Mrs. Josephine Abbas, the Zonal Director for Northwest of the National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), issued a stern warning to manufacturers and producers in Kebbi state regarding the use of harmful chemicals that pose cancer risks to consumers.
Speaking during a high-level interactive meeting with NAFDAC stakeholders in Birnin Kebbi, Abbas emphasized the agency’s commitment to safeguarding consumer health and ensuring the safety of products in the market. She specifically cautioned against the use of chemicals that could endanger unsuspecting consumers in Kebbi and across Nigeria.
Abbas extended the warning to manufacturers who operate without proper registrations or with expired licenses, urging them to comply with NAFDAC regulations to avoid sanctions. She highlighted NAFDAC’s efforts to streamline the registration process and encourage legal production through initiatives such as e-registrations, introduced by the Director-General to facilitate safe and compliant manufacturing practices.
“While NAFDAC aims to support businesses, it will not tolerate any actions that jeopardize the health of Nigerians,” Abbas stated, emphasizing the agency’s role in correcting anomalies and enforcing compliance with regulatory standards.
Earlier in the meeting, Alhaji Muyideen Sulaiman, the NAFDAC Coordinator for Kebbi state, expressed gratitude for Abbas’s visit and called for support from the agency’s headquarters in establishing a permanent office in Kebbi and replacing aging operational vehicles. Despite challenges such as banditry and limited industrial activity affecting revenue generation, Sulaiman commended the efforts of the Kebbi state government in ensuring a conducive environment for NAFDAC’s operations.
During the interactive session, Mrs. Rebecca Ezrah Dikki, representing SERMA Nigeria Limited, voiced concerns over high NAFDAC registration fees, attributing them to the proliferation of hidden and illegal productions. Dikki appealed to the Director-General to review registration fees to make them more affordable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and encourage compliance with regulatory requirements.
