The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Thursday, reiterated its commitment to ensuring the standards and quality of its regulated products.
Mrs Roseline Ajayi, Director, South-West Zone, NAFDAC, stated this during the zone's stakeholders' meeting in Ota, Ogun.
Ajayi noted that the business environment is experiencing some challenges, including fuel subsidy removal, exchange rates, and infrastructure, among others, threatening business sustainability.
She said that the producers of NAFDAC-regulated products must understand that safety, standards, and quality are not negotiable, despite all the challenges confronting them.
Ajayi said the meeting was to engage NAFDAC stakeholders operating in the Ogun 11 axis for enlightenment.
"We are determined to achieve the NAFDAC mandate and not compromise safety, standards, or quality in the phase of protecting business operators.
"It is a call on all stakeholders operating in the regulatory space to embrace and confront the dynamic nature of the business environment to explore the opportunities inherent in the challenges," she said.
Ajayi said that NAFDAC, under the leadership of Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, was concerned with the challenges posed by the factors listed above and had introduced some intervention measures to ease the burden on the stakeholders.
The director said that the creation of the Ogun 11 office was to enhance efficiency in operations, reduce burdens on other offices, and enforce regulations in various sectors.
Ajayi said that the commissioning of the NAFDAC office complex in Abeokuta would create a conducive environment for staff and stakeholders.
The director added that full migration of NAFDAC processes to the digital platform on the NAPAMS portal and the Single Trade Window
Ajayi said that the agency has streamlined the registration requirements for MSME operators.
She, however, advised them to take advantage of these opportunities to relay our concerns from our experiences and seek clarifications on issues relating to peculiar sectors of NAFDAC stakeholders.
Ajayi stressed the need for stakeholders to commit to working together to fulfil the mandate of safeguarding the health of the nation.
In his opening remarks, Mr Philip Benu, State Coordinator, Ogun 11 Office, Ota, said that the office, which was established on June 19, would bring regulatory closer to areas such as Ado-Odo/Ota, Ifo, Ewekoro, Imefo, Ipokia, Yewa North, and Yewa South.
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Benu said that the establishment of the Ota Office would also bridge the gap between the regulator and the stakeholders and lessen the challenges faced by the business environment.
Dr Charles Nwachukwu, Director, NAFDAC, Food and Chemical Laboratory, Oshodi, urged the stakeholders to register and renew their licenses through the NAFDAC Automated Products Administration and Monitoring System (NAPAMS).
Nwachukwu urged them to build standards and quality into their products, adding that they should think about the health of the public.
Mrs Juliana Abayomi, Director, NAFDAC, Food Registration and Regulatory Affairs, appealed to stakeholders to always renew their licenses before the expiration date to avoid sealing their offices.
"Don't wait for your licenses to expire before renewing them because the cost of doing the right thing is cheaper than the cost of doing the wrong way," she said.
Abayomi said that the agency was working on its NAPAMS system to be user-friendly to reduce the registration challenges, especially for stakeholders.
