Nigeria's heavy reliance on imported ingredients to produce medicines could compromise the country's medicine security, particularly during global supply disruptions. Stakeholders at a recent meeting in Abuja raised concerns about the risks associated with this dependence. They noted that the country's pharmaceutical manufacturers rely heavily on imported Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), leaving them vulnerable to disruptions in international supply chains. This vulnerability can affect the availability and affordability of essential medicines.
The meeting, organised by Nigeria Health Watch in partnership with the World Bank Group, aimed to accelerate the shift to domestic API production for priority essential medicines in Nigeria. Olumide Okunola of the World Bank Group highlighted the risks associated with Nigeria's dependence on imported APIs, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as an example of how global supply chain disruptions can impact the availability of essential medicines. He noted that Nigeria does not need to produce every pharmaceutical ingredient locally but should identify essential APIs that can be manufactured domestically to guarantee a minimum level of domestic supply.
Okunola identified several constraints to local pharmaceutical production, including inadequate infrastructure, unreliable electricity, limited access to finance, and regulatory bottlenecks. He suggested that Nigeria could leverage its existing industrial and petrochemical capacity to develop domestic production of selected pharmaceutical ingredients. To achieve this, Okunola urged policymakers to align health and industrial policies, prioritise APIs used in essential medicines, and create an environment that encourages private investment in local manufacturing.
Chris Isokpunwu, permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, echoed Okunola's concerns, stating that Nigeria's dependence on external sources for critical pharmaceutical inputs undermines its ability to guarantee sustainable health security. He emphasised that domestic production of pharmaceutical ingredients should be treated as a health-sector priority and an economic and industrial development opportunity. Isokpunwu noted that local production can strengthen the resilience of medicine supply chains, reduce exposure to international disruptions and foreign exchange pressures, create skilled jobs, and retain more economic value within the country.
However, Isokpunwu cautioned against pursuing local production without considering quality, efficiency, and affordability. He called for a practical roadmap that identifies priority APIs, investment requirements, infrastructure needs, incentives, regulatory measures, and the institutions responsible for implementation. Isokpunwu also highlighted the opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Area, which could enable Nigerian manufacturers to expand into regional markets and contribute to pharmaceutical value chains across Africa.
The National Coordinator of the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain (PVAC), Abdu Mukhtar, reported that the initiative is working with local pharmaceutical manufacturers to identify and prioritise APIs based on Nigeria's public health needs. PVAC is also working with the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority on excipient manufacturing and exploring ways to improve access to capital and technical expertise for local production. Mukhtar highlighted the initiative's pooled procurement platform, MediPool, designed to stimulate demand for locally manufactured medicines.
Efforts to strengthen local production are underway, with the federal government targeting at least 70 per cent local production of essential healthcare products by 2030. The government has secured about $2 billion in financing commitments to support local healthcare manufacturing, with approximately 50 Nigerian health companies in advanced discussions for funding. About 87 local manufacturers are benefiting from incentives under a presidential executive order granting tariff relief on pharmaceutical machinery, active pharmaceutical ingredients, and excipients.
Key points
- Nigeria's dependence on imported pharmaceutical ingredients poses risks to medicine security.
- Stakeholders urge policymakers to align health and industrial policies to encourage domestic API production.
- The federal government targets at least 70 per cent local production of essential healthcare products by 2030.
