The acting Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Mrs Yetunde Oni, has said the agency urgently needs more laboratories and offices across the country in order for it to perform its role efficiently.
She said this in Ijebu Ode during the agency’s three-day retreat for its management staff on Thursday.
Oni further said that the agency also required adequate funding, personnel and equipment.
The NAFDAC boss lamented that the agency has only seven laboratories throughout the country, noting that the number was grossly inadequate for it to effectively carry out its duties.
She said, “I want to reiterate this, NAFDAC should have offices in all the states of the Federation, as we are growing bigger, volume of activities is increasing.
“If we have a stand-alone office in each of the state, nothing stops us from having a stand-alone laboratory to serve the need of that particular state in terms of products that are regulated by NAFDAC.
“We will become more efficient and effective, our productivity will soar higher and higher.
“However it is capital intensive to come up with such a laboratory.
“Right now we have only seven laboratories in the whole of Nigeria, just seven laboratories carrying out all these functions, we are taking samples for registration, we are taking company’s samples, taking enforcement samples, we are taking samples that have violated our laws into just these seven laboratories, covering all the seven classes of products to regulate.
“So we cannot agree less that we need more laboratories”.
The theme of the retreat is: “Repositioning NAFDAC for Efficient Management and Resource Control for Greater Performance.”
Oni said the retreat was organised to reposition the agency, and to build the capacity of its workforce as well as have a system- driven organisation.
She explained that the agency’s laboratory in Oshodi, Lagos, that was gutted by fire recently, would not in any way affect its operations.
Source – Punch