The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has signalled its readiness to strengthen collaboration with the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to improve access to quality medicines in hospitals nationwide.
The move, the agency said, is in line with the Federal Government’s directive on achieving Universal Health Coverage for Nigerians.
Director-General of NAFDAC, Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye, made this known on Thursday in Abuja while receiving her NHIA counterpart, Kelechi Ohiri, during a courtesy visit.
Adeyeye stressed the need to integrate regulatory bodies into the medicine procurement chain, noting that both NAFDAC and the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) must play active roles to curb the circulation of counterfeit and expired drugs in health facilities.
She said involving the agencies would ensure that only safe, effective and high-quality medicines are supplied within the healthcare system.
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The NAFDAC boss reiterated the agency’s mandate, which includes monitoring compliance, sanctioning erring operators, revoking licences and shutting down pharmaceutical firms that fail to meet Good Manufacturing Practice standards.
She, however, expressed concern over the challenges faced by Nigerians in accessing quality healthcare, particularly under the NHIA scheme, describing patient experiences as, in some cases, difficult and traumatic.
Adeyeye assured that NAFDAC would continue to partner relevant institutions to guarantee the availability of quality medicines and ease the burden on citizens, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Speaking earlier, Ohiri commended Adeyeye’s leadership in safeguarding public health through effective regulation of medicines and other consumables.
He noted that improved healthcare delivery requires closer synergy between regulators and service providers.
According to him, the visit was aimed at reviewing the existing Memorandum of Understanding between both agencies, strengthening institutional collaboration and advancing ongoing reforms to improve access to medicines.
Ohiri also highlighted the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund as a critical intervention to expand health insurance coverage and address key concerns of Nigerians, expressing optimism that ongoing reforms within NHIA would resolve many of the challenges identified.
