NAFDAC Secures 64 Convictions, Removes ₦1.54tn Fake Products From Nigerian Markets

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has stepped up its enforcement against counterfeit and substandard products, securing 64 convictions while removing goods worth more than ₦1.54tn from circulation since 2023.

The agency’s Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, disclosed this on Monday in Lagos as she responded to growing concerns over the spread of fake products in Nigerian markets.

Adeyeye said the enforcement campaign had resulted in hundreds of arrests, numerous seizures and destruction exercises, warning that those involved in counterfeiting would continue to face prosecution.

She described counterfeiters as “merchants of death” and said NAFDAC would maintain a zero-tolerance approach to the manufacture and distribution of unsafe regulated products.

According to her, the agency secured 64 convictions nationwide, with successful prosecutions resulting in prison sentences ranging from one to seven years without the option of a fine.

Among the cases were convictions involving fake Global Fund Artemether, a codeine-containing cough and cold syrup, counterfeit ointments and condoms, as well as fake antibiotics.

Adeyeye said the agency’s enforcement operations had also led to the destruction of more than 137 40-foot truckloads of counterfeit and substandard products during coordinated raids at Idumota in Lagos, Onitsha and Ariaria International Market in Aba between February and March 2025.

The products from the operation were valued at more than ₦1.5tn.

The agency has also carried out major destruction exercises involving medicines and other regulated products.

In February 2026, NAFDAC destroyed more than ₦15bn worth of fake, expired, counterfeit and banned medicines in Ibadan, while another operation in Kuje, Abuja, resulted in the destruction of products valued at about ₦1.8bn.

The agency said it had also destroyed ₦11bn worth of expired and unregistered drugs in Ibadan in December 2024.

In Aba, NAFDAC destroyed counterfeit beverages, spirits and revalidated food products worth ₦5bn in December 2023 after shutting 150 shops. A subsequent operation in December 2024 shut 250 shops and uncovered another ₦7bn worth of similar products.

Adeyeye said the value of products destroyed nationwide at street-market prices exceeded ₦120bn in 2024 alone.

Beyond seizures and destruction, the agency has intensified its post-market surveillance activities.

Between May and July 2026, NAFDAC visited 6,233 facilities and removed 7,210 brands and products from circulation across the country.

Food and water products accounted for 3,633 of the products removed from 1,808 facilities, while the Drugs and Herbals directorate visited 2,084 facilities and recovered 2,459 products.

The agency also uncovered an alleged scheme involving the reuse of CWAY-branded 19-litre dispenser bottles by three companies.

Adeyeye said the companies allegedly refilled empty bottles bearing the identity of a registered water company with water obtained from unapproved sources before supplying the products to hotels and supermarkets.

She said the operators had been sanctioned.

The NAFDAC boss, however, acknowledged that the agency could not single-handedly eliminate every unsafe product from the Nigerian market.

She noted that certain fresh agricultural produce, including apples, grapes and oranges, falls under the responsibility of the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service, while traditionally packaged staples such as unbranded palm oil and fufu sold in open markets are not under NAFDAC’s direct and absolute regulatory control.

Adeyeye therefore urged state and local authorities to strengthen cooperation with NAFDAC in protecting consumers.

“Fakers are not ghosts; they exist within our communities, neighbourhoods, and business premises,” she said.

She also appealed to Nigerians to report suspected fake and non-compliant products directly to the agency rather than relying solely on social media.

NAFDAC provided its enquiry line as 0700-1-NAFDAC (0700-1-623322) and its complaint line as 0800-1-NAFDAC (0800-1-623322).

Adeyeye said the agency had previously advocated tougher sanctions under the NAFDAC Act and the Counterfeit and Fake Drugs Act, arguing that stronger punishment was necessary to deter manufacturers and distributors of dangerous counterfeit products.