By Caleb Ishaya, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has congratulated the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, for retaining its Maturity Level 3, ML3, status from the World Health Organisation, WHO, for the regulation of medicines and vaccines.
Tinubu, in a statement issued by his Special Adviser (Information and Strategy), Bayo Onanuga, in Abuja, on Monday, described the WHO recognition as “a reflection of government’s significant investments in NAFDAC’s regulatory capacity.
”NAFDAC has successfully maintained a regulatory system that operates as a stable, well-functioning and integrated framework for regulating medicines and vaccines (non-producing).”
He pointed out that “This achievement results from investments by government in strengthening the regulatory system.”
He also commended NAFDAC’s leadership and staff for their dedication, professionalism and commitment to protect public health.
The president said the achievement reinforces Nigeria’s credibility as a trusted player in global health security and pandemic preparedness.
He restated government’s commitment to strengthen regulatory systems and ensure safe, effective and high-quality medicines and vaccines.
He noted that the milestone aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda to transform Nigeria’s healthcare landscape.
He highlighted progress in upgrading over 17,000 primary health centres nationwide to improve access.
Other efforts include expanding maternal care, upgrading diagnostics in rural areas and training 120,000 frontline health workers.
Tinubu also committed to doubling national health insurance coverage within three years to improve access to essential health services.
He stressed that boosting local manufacturing of medicines and medical products remains a key priority.
He pledged continued collaboration with development partners and donors to expand investment in Nigeria’s pharmaceutical sector.
He assured that his administration would support NAFDAC to attain WHO Maturity Level 4, the highest global regulatory standard.
AljazirahNigeria reports that the global body conducted a re-benchmarking exercise from May 28 to 30, assessing NAFDAC’s performance against global regulatory standards.
It first attained ML3 status in 2022, becoming the first African National Regulatory Authority to achieve this for medicines and vaccines (non-producing).
In line with WHO protocols, the revalidation involved periodic reviews to confirm sustained compliance with international benchmarks.
The latest evaluation followed formal re-benchmarking in November 2024 and five Institutional Development Plan, IDP, review meetings held between February and April.
