By Saminu Ibrahim
The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening local pharmaceutical manufacturing as part of efforts to achieve medicine security, build healthcare resilience and promote sustainable economic development in Nigeria and across Africa.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, stated this on Monday while declaring open the 8th Nigeria Pharma Manufacturers Expo (NPME), organised by the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (PMG-MAN) at Harbour Point Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Salako said disruptions to global supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in healthcare financing had underscored the need for Nigeria and other African countries to develop domestic capacity to produce medicines, vaccines, diagnostics and other critical health technologies.
“Our conversation can no longer be limited to whether we can access medicines when global supply chains are functioning. The more fundamental question is whether we can produce what our people need when those supply chains are disrupted.
“Medicine security is therefore not simply a health-sector objective; it is an issue of national resilience and sovereignty,” he said.
The minister said the Federal Government, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had introduced interventions, including the Presidential Initiative to Unlock the Healthcare Value Chain (PVAC) and the Presidential Executive Order for Pharmaceutical and Allied Sectors, to revitalise local manufacturing and strengthen the health value chain.
According to him, PVAC has secured commitments of about $2 billion at single-digit interest rates, with about 50 Nigerian health firms currently in advanced funding discussions.
He said the initiative was targeting at least 70 per cent local production of essential healthcare products by 2030.
Salako also disclosed that 87 local manufacturers were benefiting from the implementation of the Presidential Executive Order, which provides zero tariffs on pharmaceutical machinery, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and excipients across nearly 1,000 Harmonised System codes.
He explained that the order also provides fiscal and non-fiscal measures, including tariff relief and market-shaping mechanisms, to support domestic production.
The minister highlighted ongoing efforts to expand local production of APIs, vaccines, biologics, diagnostics and other health commodities.
These, he said, include the operationalisation of the NIPRD API Capacity Building and Concept Production Centre, development of commercial API manufacturing capacity and initiatives to localise production of HIV, hepatitis and syphilis diagnostic products.
Salako called for increased investment in research and development, particularly in harnessing Nigeria’s phytomedicinal resources.
He said localisation must go beyond importing active ingredients, packaging materials and technologies and merely assembling finished products in Nigeria.
“Localization must not mean simply importing the active ingredients, packaging materials and technologies and assembling the final product here.
“We must progressively build capacity across the entire value chain—from research and raw materials to formulation, quality assurance, manufacturing, packaging and distribution. That is how localization becomes genuine capability,” he said.
He added that the establishment of Medipool, Nigeria’s national Group Purchasing Organisation for essential medicines and medical commodities, would help create predictable and large-scale demand for domestic manufacturers.
According to him, Medipool would achieve this through aggregated procurement, bulk purchasing and improved supply-chain efficiency.
Salako urged pharmaceutical manufacturers, researchers, investors and development partners to embrace regional manufacturing and take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to expand markets and improve competitiveness.
He said Nigeria’s pharmaceutical transformation would depend on sustained investment, innovation, regulatory alignment and regional market integration.
“We must move from dependency to capability, from fragmented markets to regional scale, and from localization to genuine African pharmaceutical sovereignty.
“Our health security will be built not only in hospitals and laboratories, but also in our factories, universities, research centres, supply chains and investment decisions,” he said.
Declaring the expo open, Salako expressed confidence that sustained collaboration among stakeholders would contribute significantly to achieving medicine security, strengthening Nigeria’s healthcare value chain and building a more resilient pharmaceutical manufacturing ecosystem in Nigeria and Africa.
The expo has the theme, “Regional Manufacturing: Advancing Africa’s Pharma and Life-Science Sovereignty through Localization.”
