A former President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, has stated that the federal government is shortchanging over 150 local drug manufacturers through the patronage of foreign companies for drug supply.
He called on government agencies in charge of drug procurement for the country to patronise local drug manufacturers.
Akintayo spoke at the 2023 annual national conference organised by the Pharmaceutical Wholesalers and Distributors’ Association of Nigeria (PWDAN) in Lagos with the theme, “Strengthening the Pharma Supply Chain: Panacea to Good Distribution Practice and Medicine Security”.
The PSN past president, who was the chairman of the event, decried the capital flight in the drug distribution value chain of the pharmaceutical industry, saying the government agency in charge of drug procurement is fond of patronising foreign companies.
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“What that government agency is doing shortchanges all the local manufacturers in Nigeria; there are more than 150 of them registered by Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria (PCN).
“We are shortchanging over 300 registered importers and companies representatives, all the members of PWDAN and more than 500 hordes of retailers
“For me, these are dimensions of medicine security we need to deal with. We are empowering foreign companies at the detriment of the local manufacturers and we are talking about capital flight, these guys make all the money and ship it out, there is nowhere in the whole world where these things happen,” he said.
However, he called on the regulators to up their game even as he advised President Bola Tinubu to appoint an adviser on pharmaceuticals.
“If you want healthcare to be accessible, you cannot do that without drugs, President Tinubu needs to have an adviser on pharmaceuticals who will also double as one who will champion his reform agenda in drug distribution and tell the government that a sector in health that can contribute to GDP is definitely the pharmaceuticals,” he added.
Earlier, the chairman, PWDAN, Pharm. Ernest Okafor, said the conference was designed to deepen effective, good drug distribution in both public and private sectors of the country’s healthcare.
“Pharmaceutical wholesale distribution remains the hub and in no doubt occupies a pivotal position in the supply value chain,” he said.
