The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has unveiled 600 pharmacists to strengthen drug regulation nationwide.

The initiative is part of efforts to combat substandard and falsified medicines, unwholesome food, and other public health risks across Nigeria and its communities

The agency’s Resident Media Consultant, Olusayo Akintola, said this in a statement in Abuja on Sunday, quoting Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, on the initiative’s objectives and implementation nationwide efforts.

Mrs Adeyeye said the 600 qualified and service-ready pharmacists were drawn from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, following a transparent selection process based on merit, availability, and geographical representation.

She urged the pharmacists, while administering their oath of allegiance, to serve Nigeria with integrity beyond negotiation, warning that they would face pressures and inducements designed to compromise their regulatory responsibilities.

“Once a regulator is bought, the public loses its protection,” she said.

Mrs Adeyeye said the pharmacists had pursued careers in different fields before joining the programme, while their selection reflected a deliberate effort to strengthen regulatory capacity across Nigeria’s diverse communities and regions.

She described the Pharmacists Regulatory Volunteers Programme (PRVP) as more than an internship or attachment, calling it an investment in people, professional development, stronger national regulatory capacity, and public protection.

She said, “The volunteers will receive training in medicines regulation, including pharmacovigilance, compliance monitoring, quality assurance, data collection, public sensitisation against drug abuse, and practical measures protecting Nigerians from dangerous products and counterfeits.”

Mrs Adeyeye said the volunteers would also learn what it meant to stand between Nigerians and substandard, falsified, or dangerous products, while developing practical skills needed for effective regulatory interventions.

She explained that the programme would build a national reserve of trained pharmacists who could be mobilised during product recalls, suspected circulation of falsified medicines, public health emergencies, and other urgent regulatory situations.

Mrs Adeyeye said her ambition was for every state to have a standing pool of trained, vetted, and mobilisable pharmacists working alongside NAFDAC state offices to strengthen surveillance and regulatory activities.

She said the initiative would extend NAFDAC’s regulatory presence beyond laboratories and ports of entry to markets, community pharmacies, patent medicine stores, and primary healthcare centres nationwide.

“Regulation that lives only in the capital cannot protect a nation of more than 200 million people. This programme is aimed at taking regulation to the doorstep of the Nigerian people,” she said.

Mrs Adeyeye urged the volunteers to remain available and disciplined, stressing that they must respond promptly whenever called for assignments and ensure every responsibility assigned to them was properly completed.

She also emphasised confidentiality, saying information obtained during inspections and investigations belonged to NAFDAC and the Nigerian people, rather than social media platforms or unauthorised individuals seeking sensitive regulatory information.

“Fourth, a learning posture: ask questions, read the guidelines, take your training seriously and document your work properly.

“You must have respect for the communities you are serving. You will enter markets, pharmacies and health facilities as ambassadors of NAFDAC and the pharmacy profession. Conduct yourselves accordingly,” she said.

The DG said the programme would provide hands-on regulatory experience covering pharmacovigilance reporting, laboratory awareness, risk communication, enforcement procedures, surveillance, and other essential activities supporting effective medicine regulation nationwide.

She said the volunteers would be trained and mentored by professionals with decades of experience in regulatory practice, helping them acquire practical knowledge while developing competence for future professional responsibilities.

Mrs Adeyeye added that their services would be formally documented through certification and letters of service, strengthening their credentials before employers, licensing bodies, and postgraduate institutions while supporting professional development.

She said the volunteers would also build a national professional network across the 36 states and FCT, adding that the experience could support career advancement within regulatory and pharmaceutical sectors.

The DG urged directors and state coordinators to take ownership of the volunteers, mentor them effectively, and deploy them meaningfully to strengthen regulatory activities and public health protection nationwide.

“To our 600 volunteers: you carry today not just a certificate of enrolment, but a pledge to serve with integrity, to represent NAFDAC and your profession with honour. You must place the safety of the Nigerian public above every other consideration,” she said.

The statement also quoted the Programme Coordinator and Director, Narcotics and Controlled Substances (NCS), Dr. Momodu Rametu, as saying the initiative began with an expression of interest and evolved into a national pool of 600 pharmacists.

Mr Rametu said the volunteers were drawn from all states of the federation and the FCT, describing the PRVP as an organised backup system for emergency response and supplemental regulatory support.

He said the initiative would increase citizen participation in regulation, particularly through post-marketing surveillance, drug-demand reduction campaigns, and community-level efforts against unsafe pharmaceutical practices nationwide.

Similarly, the Coordinator, NAFDAC Training School, Dr Tunde Sigbeku, said his role was to impart knowledge as the foundation of capacity, efficiency, professionalism, and effective regulatory performance across the agency’s operations nationwide.

He described the volunteer role as a call to service and responsibility, requiring devotion, determination, discipline, integrity, and commitment to protecting Nigerians from unsafe medicines and other harmful products.

“In the online training school, we will give you details of how NAFDAC operates. We will share with you activities on post-market surveillance, pharmacovigilance, prevention of antimicrobial resistance, inspection and enforcement, and narcotics and controlled substances,” Mr Sigbeku said.

He said the training would also cover drug abuse and its societal impact, adding that volunteers would support surveillance, intelligence gathering, research, and other regulatory activities designed to protect public health.

Mr Sigbeku congratulated Mrs Adeyeye on the initiative, describing it as the first time NAFDAC would have a national reserve of personnel supporting efforts against fake, substandard, falsified, and dangerous pharmaceutical products across Nigeria.

(NAN)