NAFDAC Destroys ₦939 Million Worth of Fake and Expired Drugs in Anambra

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed counterfeit, expired, and substandard pharmaceutical products valued at over ₦939 million in Anambra State as part of a nationwide enforcement operation aimed at protecting public health.

The destruction exercise took place at the Anambra State Waste Management Authority dumpsite in Awka, where officials supervised the disposal of seized products removed from circulation across the South-East region.

NAFDAC Says Fake Products Pose Serious Health Risks

Speaking during the exercise, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Christiana Adeyeye, described the action as a decisive regulatory intervention targeting unsafe, falsified, and expired medicines, food items, medical devices, and cosmetics.

She warned that such products pose severe threats to public health, including treatment failure, drug resistance, prolonged illness, disability, and in extreme cases, death.

According to her, the seized items were recovered through routine surveillance, intelligence-led enforcement operations, and voluntary handovers from stakeholders in the pharmaceutical distribution chain within the region.

Products Seized Across Multiple Enforcement Operations

NAFDAC said the destroyed goods included unregistered pharmaceuticals, substandard medicines, expired drugs, and unsafe consumables gathered across enforcement exercises in the South-East.

The agency explained that some of the items were voluntarily surrendered by members of the National Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers in Anambra and Enugu States, as part of ongoing compliance efforts.

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Officials added that the operation reflects a coordinated national strategy being implemented across all six geopolitical zones of the country to eliminate unsafe products from the market.

Agency Warns Against Counterfeit Trade

Adeyeye issued a strong warning to counterfeiters, illegal importers, distributors, and retailers involved in the sale of fake or substandard products, insisting that regulatory agencies will intensify enforcement actions nationwide.

She also urged Nigerians to buy only from credible sources and ensure that all products carry valid NAFDAC registration numbers, while encouraging the public to report suspicious items to the agency.

The NAFDAC chief also acknowledged the support of security agencies including the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the Nigerian Army, which assisted in the enforcement operation.

The exercise concluded with the public destruction of the seized products, reinforcing the agency’s ongoing campaign against counterfeit and unsafe goods in Nigeria’s pharmaceutical and consumer markets.