The Federal Government of Nigeria has finally deposited its instrument of ratification of the AMA Treaty as the 34th member-state of the African Union (AU), representing a historic milestone in the advancement of medicines regulation and public health across the African continent.
The Commissioner of Health and Humanitarian Affairs & Social Development of the African Union, Amb. A. Twum-Amoah, confirmed Nigeria’s fulfilling of the requirment at the Inaugural African Medicines Agency (AMA) Week, which kicked off last and would be rounded off today in Kigali, Rwanda
The forum was facilitated by the Director General, Dr. Delese Mimi Darko, the Governing Board, representative of the Conference of State Parties and AU Special Envoy.
The conference, which is attended by the NAFDAC’s Director-General, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, also has as participants medicine regulatory agencies across the continent, Regional Economic Communities representatives, important dignitaries within the global health ecosystem including WHO and the European Union development and international partners
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As Africa’s most populous nation and one of its largest pharmaceutical markets, the NAFDAC boss explained that Nigeria’s participation would strengthen the collective resolve of African countries to establish a more coordinated, effective and harmonised regulatory environment for medicines and other medical products.
According to the Director-General, this important development reinforces Nigeria’s commitment to safeguarding public health, combating substandard and falsified medical products, promoting pharmaceutical innovation, and advancing local manufacturing as a cornerstone of health security and economic development.
Adeyeye explained that it also provided an opportunity to deepen collaboration between Nigeria’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the African Medicines Agency, and other national and regional regulatory institutions in pursuit of shared continental health objectives.
She maintained that Nigeria’s participation should now be translated into practical action through sustained institutional collaboration, regulatory capacity development, information sharing, scientific cooperation and the effective implementation of the AMA Treaty.
Ultimately, she pointed out that the success of the AMA would be measured by its contribution to ensuring that every African has access to safe, effective, quality-assured and affordable medicines to be driven through the maturity of the different National Regulatory Agencies.
Adeyeye stressed that Nigeria’s ratification was not merely a diplomatic or legal achievement, but “a significant investment in Africa’s health security, pharmaceutical sovereignty and sustainable development.”
