NAFDAC Seeks Global Support To Revive Vaccine Manufacturing In Nigeria

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has called on international partners to support Nigeria’s efforts to establish local vaccine manufacturing facilities.

The Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, made the appeal at the 8th Nigeria Pharma Manufacturers’ Expo in Lagos.

The Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Group of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (PMG-MAN) and PGE Expo PVT Limited jointly organised the two-day event.

Adeyeye said Nigeria needed to restart vaccine production to complete the requirements for the World Health Organisation (WHO) Maturity Level 4 for vaccine lot release.

She explained that NAFDAC had met eight of the nine functions required to achieve full benchmarking for medicines and vaccines.

According to her, vaccine lot release remains the only outstanding requirement.

“We want to call on our international partners that have been of tremendous help. Without them we wouldn’t have been here,” Adeyeye said.

“I want to challenge them to contribute to fill and finish modular vaccine manufacturing so that we can get our vaccine lot release,” she added.

The NAFDAC boss said Nigeria had developed a feasible plan for the remaining requirement and estimated that the investment would be manageable.

“To get Lot Release, Maturity Level 4, we have figured it out in a way we have estimated. It’s not going to cost too much,” she said.

Adeyeye also recalled that NAFDAC once manufactured vaccines, saying the country needed to return to local production.

“It’s high time we went back to vaccine manufacturing,” she said.

The NAFDAC director-general commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the 2024 Executive Order aimed at strengthening local pharmaceutical manufacturing.

She said the policy responded to years of pressure for incentives to help local drug manufacturers survive difficult operating conditions.

“I understand the stress our manufacturers are going through. Our manufacturers are patriots because they could have given up,” Adeyeye said.

She said the Executive Order also helped draw greater attention to the pharmaceutical industry and supported efforts to unlock the value chain.

Adeyeye traced part of NAFDAC’s progress to its Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) Roadmap, which she said involved audits of more than 165 companies across the country.

She said NAFDAC inspectors spent eight months conducting GMP compliance audits under the initiative, which USAID funded through the United States Pharmacopeia.

According to her, the focus went beyond production to ensuring that manufacturers consistently produced quality medicines.

Adeyeye said NAFDAC data showed that local manufacturers reduced imports under the “5 plus 5” and Ceiling Initiative by 70 per cent between 2021 and 2025.

She attributed the reduction to manufacturers’ growing capacity and willingness to compete in the local market.

The NAFDAC chief said the agency also invested heavily in staff competence, noting that stronger regulatory capacity had attracted international recognition.

She disclosed that NAFDAC joined the International Medical Device Regulators Forum in 2023, while its laboratory in Yaba secured WHO prequalification in September that year.

Adeyeye explained that WHO regularly re-benchmarks regulatory agencies to ensure they maintain the required standards.

She said NAFDAC became the first regulatory agency in sub-Saharan Africa to successfully undergo re-benchmarking at the first attempt.

“All this is because of our industry. It’s because of our citizens,” she said.

The chairman of PMG-MAN, Mr Oluwatosin Jolayemi, described the expo as a major platform for pharmaceutical manufacturing in Central and West Africa.

Jolayemi, who is also Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Daily Need Limited, said the event brought manufacturers, regulators, investors and development partners together.

He commended Adeyeye for pushing the industry towards international standards in quality and GMP compliance.

According to him, NAFDAC’s policies had started producing positive changes in pharmaceutical manufacturing, but stakeholders needed to sustain the gains.

Jolayemi also urged the Federal Government to extend the 2024 Executive Order for another two years after its expiration in March 2027.

He said medicine security and pharmaceutical sovereignty required sustained policies, investment and capacity development.

“Journey towards Medicine Security and Pharma Sovereignty is not a short-term intervention,” Jolayemi said.

He added that the industry needed policy consistency and a predictable operating environment to sustain local pharmaceutical production.

A total of 132 companies from Nigeria, the United States, China, Argentina, Egypt, India, Rwanda, Austria, the United Arab Emirates, France, Germany and Indonesia participated in the two-day expo.