Regina Otokpa 
…says products without NAFDAC registration to be banned from exportation
…to review sanctions on defaulters
The Director-General of the National Agency for Food, Drugs and Administration Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, on Tuesday lamented that the rejection of products especially foodstuffs exported to the European Union (EU) was causing Nigeria a lot of embarrassment and huge shame.
Adeyeye who addressed newsmen in Abuja on the Agency’s efforts to rebrand the image of Nigeria internationally and on the outcome of the Agency’s meeting with the UK Food Standard Agency in Abuja (FSA), said she was out to make Nigerian products respectable by building quality.
While lamenting that almost 100 per cent of products rejected do not go through NAFDAC, she said any product without its registration number and the necessary certification would no longer be allowed to leave the shores of the country, even as the Board governing the Agency would review its sanctions for stiffer penalties to any exporter of products under its purview who falls short of its requirements and quality of the exported product(s).
According to her, any product under its line of regulation which was billed for exportation must be subjected to laboratory testing by the Agency to ascertain its quality and ensure it conforms to internationally accepted standards, as 68 products especially food items, were rejected in EU between January to June alone,
She said: The shame that rejection of our products brings to us as a country is huge. We have tariffs for breaking our regulations or not adhering by our regulations. Sanctions will come big time because we want them to produce quality products and to remember they have been sanctioned so that they will not do it again.
“The challenge bedevilling the export process of NAFDAC regulated products especially, assuring safety and quality status of food exports in Nigeria has been traced to non-compliance with advisory guidelines established by NAFDAC to encourage participatory exports.
“Almost all exported food products are processed without statutory testing by NAFDAC. Therefore, it is not surprising that all the items exported without NAFDAC quality control and safety tests are rejected.
“Non-utilization of hitherto free laboratory testing by NAFDAC for export samples coupled with the connivance of unscrupulous agents. Exclusion of NAFDAC’s requirements for its regulated products in the mandatory pre-shipment inspection in the National Export Supervision Scheme (NESS) as administered by the FGN-appointed Pre-shipment Inspection Agents (PIAs).
“Unwillingness of exporters to comply with minimal sanitary and phytosanitary measures required for exports to countries with stringent market access. Poor packaging, disregard for importation requirements of trading partners countries Penchant for sourcing from open markets for exports without any form of minimal safety or quality specifications.
Unwillingness to invest in pre-export activities that help to ensure sustainable export. Disinformation on the roles of NAFDAC in the pre-shipment inspection and verification exercise of container stuffing.”
The NAFDAC boss added, “To ratify all these and as an outcome of NAFDAC’s recent meeting with FSA, the agency is commencing on six regulatory-measure approaches to address the situation.
These include: Immediate inclusion and implementation, as a matter of urgency, of NAFDAC Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Good Hygienic Practices (GHP) and Laboratory testings (e.g., mycotoxin, pesticide residue, and heavy metals) certification for the regulated products – food, drug, and others by the National Export Supervision Scheme (NESS) as administered by the FGN appointed Pre-shipment Inspection Agents (PIAs).
“Inclusion of NAFDAC in the CBN Export Proceed (NXP) form processing. I am engaging very soon with the Comptroller General of Customs as the new administrator of the Nigeria Single Window Trade portal to facilitate this.”
Adeyeye further noted that the Agency was working on strengthening existing in-country regulatory infrastructures on export such as “Development and introduction of NAFDAC Regulations on Export 2022. The regulation is already hosted on the NAFDAC website with e-copy sent to exporters, trade associations and professional bodies for their inputs and comments within the next 60 days starting from 11th October 2023.
“Registration by NAFDAC of all exporters of its Regulated Products. This is in addition to the general registration by the Nigerian Exports Promotion Council (NEPC). Closer working relationship with NAFDAC’s sister Agencies, and major trading partners on safety and quality of Nigerian exports, starting with UK and EU.”
While disclosing the ban on dried beans would be lifted by the first quarter of 2024, the DG disclosed that its continuous engagements with the UK FSA was already yielding positive results as witnessed in the EU reduction of Nigeria melon inspection from 100% to 50%.
“In the interim, I implore all Nigerian exporters trading in NAFDAC-regulated products to obtain necessary certifications for processing of their products. These could be processed, semi-processed, food-destined for further processing or bulk food such as cocoa, sesame seed, groundnut, melon or grains (e.g., beans, indigenous rice, etc.) tea materials, ogbonno and Mellon; drugs, cosmetics, chemicals, agro-chemicals, beverages, fruit juices, and medical devices.
“All exporters should join hands with NAFDAC and contact the Agency for more information on the Single Window Trade (SWT) portal: www.trade.gov.ng.
“They must leave ample time for processing unless their product is already registered for the destination country, the facility already has cGMP certification, and the client has been a regular exporter with good records with NAFDAC.
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“They must leave ample time for processing unless their product is already registered for the destination country, the facility already has cGMP certification, and the client has been a regular exporter with good records with NAFDAC.
“They are all also encouraged to contact the NAFDAC website to read up and comply with the stated steps in the guidelines. To NAFDAC’s credit, for hundreds of products whose export process passed through NAFDAC, none has suffered rejection to date.
“Going forward, to stem the worsening situation, no patriot should export any NAFDAC Regulated product without it passing through and being certified of its safety and quality status including full compliance with the destination country government requirements. This is also very important to avert colossal economic loss resulting from the rejection of non-compliant exports by the trading partners.”
