Updates On Recent Activities And Other Developments At The National Agency For Food And Drugs Administration & Control (NAFDAC)

1. NAFDAC has issued a public advisory following the recall of Indomie Noodles Vegetable Flavour by French authorities due to undeclared milk and egg allergens. The Agency clarified that the affected product is not registered for sale in Nigeria and that noodles are on Nigeria's import prohibition list, significantly limiting the risk of entry into the local market. Nonetheless, NAFDAC has heightened its nationwide surveillance, alerted ports inspectors, and directed officials to seize the product if found. See the link to the update at https://nafdac.gov.ng/press-release-on-recall-of-indomie-noodles-vegetable-flavour-by-health-officials-in-france-over-undeclared-allergens-milk-and-eggs-did-not-originate-from-nigeria-and-not-a-nafdac-registered-product/
2. NAFDAC has been admitted as a full member of the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH), marking a major milestone in Nigeria's regulatory landscape. The admission, approved at the ICH Assembly meeting in Singapore in November 2025, follows a rigorous two-year process involving capacity building, guideline implementation, and active participation in expert working groups after NAFDAC attained Observer status in 2023.
   See the link to the update here: https://nafdac.gov.ng/nafdac-announces-a-transition-from-an-observer-status-to-full-membership-of-the-international-council-for-harmonisation-ich/
3. NAFDAC has reaffirmed its commitment to fully enforce the ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and small-volume PET or glass bottles below 200ml by December 2025, in line with a recent Senate directive and existing inter-agency agreements. The measure, supported by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, is aimed at protecting public health, particularly safeguarding minors and young adults from alcohol misuse. The Agency clarified that the ban aligns with Nigeria's commitments under the WHO Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol and follows a phased approach agreed with industry stakeholders since 2018, with no further extensions beyond December 2025. NAFDAC also called on manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to ensure full compliance while intensifying public awareness campaigns on the health and social risks of alcohol abuse. The link to the update is available here: https://nafdac.gov.ng/press-release-by-director-general-national-agency-for-food-and-drug-administration-and-control-prof-mojisola-christianah-adeyeyenafdac-reaffirms-commitment-to-enforce-the-ban-on-alcohol-in-sachets-a/
4. NAFDAC has announced that the World Health Organization (WHO) has officially reaffirmed Nigeria's Maturity Level 3 (ML3) status for the regulation of medicines and vaccines, effective 30 June 2025. The reaffirmation followed a WHO re-benchmarking exercise conducted in late 2024 and subsequent follow-up reviews completed in 2025, confirming that all critical recommendations were successfully addressed.
   This milestone confirms that NAFDAC operates a stable, well-functioning, and integrated regulatory system and maintains Nigeria's position—alongside the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN)—as the first National Regulatory Authority in Africa to sustain ML3 status. See the link to the update here: https://nafdac.gov.ng/nafdac-pcn-retains-who-maturity-level-3-ml3-status-for-regulation-of-medicines-and-vaccines/
5. NAFDAC has reiterated that its enforcement operations conducted between February and March 2025 at the Idumota, Aba, and Onitsha open drug markets were carried out within its statutory mandate to protect public health. The raids led to the removal of banned, expired, falsified, substandard, and illicit narcotic medicines valued at over ₦1 trillion, with findings showing widespread non-compliance with Good Storage and Distribution Practices and lack of required registration by the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria. Find a link to the update here: https://nafdac.gov.ng/update-on-the-ongoing-enforcement-operation-on-the-open-drug-markets-in-nigeria/

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