Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, director general of the agency, said this in a statement by Mr Sayo Akintola, Resident Media Consultant, NAFDAC, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday, in Abuja.
Adeyeye said that the action of NAFDAC was in accordance with its zero tolerance for circulation of substandard and falsified medicines in the country. The Pharmaceutical companies were shut down following a nationwide surveillance their manufacturing activities. These local manufacturers, in spite of appropriate notification failed to meet minimum Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards in line with extant requirements to assure the quality, safety and efficacy of pharmaceutical products, she said.
• Lawan insists on product review before usage
Medical experts have warned that the emergence of a new variant of COVID-19, which is 70 per cent more contagious, could affect effectiveness of current vaccines. The fresh disease has shown face in United Kingdom and a couple of other nations.
To avert putting the entire national immunisation programme in jeopardy, they advised the Federal Government to prioritise local production of the therapy.
This comes as President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, charged the Federal Government to ensure thorough product review before consumption.
He made the call yesterday at a meeting between the Senate leadership and top officials of the Ministry of Health over the cure in Abuja.