Regulatory agency NAFDAC conducts major raids, boosting revenue from drug market enforcement.
By Disun Amosun
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has disclosed that it generated N2.5 billion from its recent clampdown on illicit drug markets in Lagos, Onitsha, and Aba.
The Agency however complained of deduction from source from the amount of over N1bn, leaving it in a quagmire and pauper position to fund its capital and operational obligations.
Director-General of the agency, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, who revealed this during a session before the House of Representatives Committee on Food and Drug Administration and Control, said the funds were fines collected from traders found guilty of selling fake or substandard drugs and other infractions during recent enforcement actions in open markets across the country.
While stressing that all funds were paid directly into NAFDAC’s official account, she noted that N996 million was spent on enforcement operations, N159 million was borrowed from a donor grant, and N1.175 billion went to regulatory expenses.
According to her, the agency was left with about N206 million after deductions Okayed by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation OAGF.
She said the operation, which deployed over 1,300 security personnel, uncovered widespread violations ranging from expired and unapproved drugs to poor storage practices.
“The charges collected were paid directly into a NAFDAC account. The total amount was about N2.5 billion—roughly N2.537 billion.
“For the operation in the three markets—Lagos, Onitsha, and Aba—about N996 million was spent. We had to borrow N159 million from an existing $4million grant from a donor agency because we didn’t have funds.
The NAFDAC boss added that regulatory expenses amounted to N1.175 billion, So, out of the N2.537 billion, we have only about N207 million left in the account.”, she said.
Adeyeye said the enforcement drive, which lasted up to four weeks in some locations, uncovered serious threats to public health.
She disclosed that some shop owners were caught distributing banned substances like Tramadol and selling expired or unregistered medicines.
“These charges were not punitive but necessary. The standard fine for violating Good Distribution and Storage Practice (GDSP) is N2 million, but in many cases, we reduced it to N500,000,” she said.
She, however lamented that the agency’s inability to sustain such critical operations is being crippled by severe revenue restrictions imposed by the federal government
While decrying the financial constraints facing the agency, Adeyeye explained that at the end of 2023, NAFDAC had N19 billion in its coffers
The DG however noted that N9 billion was removed before the agency could access it, and only N4.5 billion was eventually released for the following year’s budget.
Speaking of the agency’s 2024 raid in Kano, she described the operation in the Northwestern state as monumental and court-mandated intervention that differed significantly from the raids conducted in Lagos, Onitsha, and Aba.
She said the Kano raid was anchored on a judgment delivered on February 16, 2024, by the Federal High Court which ordered the relocation of open drug market traders to the newly constructed Coordinated Wholesale Centre (CWC), known as the Kanawa Pharmaceutical Centre.
“The traders initially resisted as there were real threats of violence. But we had no choice; we had to act. They padlocked their shops but we bought bigger padlocks and sealed them. To reopen, they had to agree to relocate”, she said.
Adeyeye clarified that no administrative charges or fines were collected during the Kano enforcement, due to the urgent and court-directed nature of the operation.
The DG however noted that post-marketing surveillance was carried out after relocation.
