The National Chairman of the Association of Industrial Pharmacists of Nigeria (NAIP), Bankole Ezebuilo, has urged the Federal Government to take urgent steps to strengthen local pharmaceutical manufacturing, warning that Nigeria’s continued dependence on imported medicines poses a major threat to national healthcare security.
Speaking at the 29th Annual National Conference and Training of NAIP held in Ilorin, Ezebuilo said Nigeria must strategically position itself as Africa’s leading pharmaceutical production hub through deliberate investment, innovation, and supportive government policies.
The conference, themed “Collaboration and Innovation to Build Local Solutions for the Future of Nigeria’s Pharmaceutical Industry,” brought together regulators, manufacturers, policymakers, healthcare professionals, and other industry stakeholders.
According to the NAIP chairman, Nigeria currently imports over 70 per cent of its medicines, a situation he described as dangerous for both healthcare delivery and economic sustainability.
“No nation can outsource its health security,” Ezebuilo declared, stressing that the country must decide between continued dependence on imported drugs and the pursuit of pharmaceutical sovereignty through aggressive local manufacturing.
He called on the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a national emergency in the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector and introduce policies capable of transforming Nigeria into the continent’s pharmaceutical powerhouse.
Ezebuilo assured the Federal Government that NAIP members are prepared to partner with relevant agencies to drive Nigeria’s pharmaceutical industrial revolution, noting that healthcare sustainability cannot be imported but deliberately built through collaboration among government, academia, industry players, development partners, and regulators.
He noted that global supply chain disruptions and foreign exchange volatility have exposed the dangers of relying heavily on imported medicines and pharmaceutical raw materials.
“A nation that cannot produce its own medicines is a nation negotiating with its health, and negotiation is not where you want to be when lives are at stake,” he said.
The NAIP chairman observed that while some finished pharmaceutical products are manufactured locally, most Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) are still imported into the country.
According to him, achieving pharmaceutical self-sufficiency would improve medicine availability, strengthen quality control, conserve foreign exchange, create jobs, and position Nigeria as a strategic regional manufacturing centre.
“To build local solutions, we must stop importing not just medicines, but also ideas,” he added, while calling on investors, researchers, and policymakers to support innovation and industrial growth within the sector.
Ezebuilo also challenged pharmaceutical stakeholders to move beyond conferences and discussions toward building real industrial capacity capable of addressing Nigeria’s healthcare needs.
As part of activities marking the conference, NAIP commissioned and renovated healthcare centres worth millions of naira at the palace of the Emir of Ilorin as part of its humanitarian outreach programme tagged “Speaking Humanity with Passion.”
The outreach also featured a free medical programme led by the Kwara State Commissioner for Health, Amina L. Imam, providing consultations, medications, and healthcare interventions to more than 1,000 indigent residents from Ilorin and neighbouring communities including Oke-Oyi, Iponrin, Apado, and Egbejila.
The conference attracted several notable pharmaceutical industry leaders, including past presidents of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria and representatives of regulatory bodies and healthcare institutions.
Delivering the keynote address, internationally recognised pharmaceutical executive Henrietta N. Ukwu called for stronger collaboration and innovation to secure the future of Nigeria’s pharmaceutical industry.
Ezebuilo concluded by expressing confidence that Nigeria could transform its pharmaceutical sector into a globally competitive industry capable of reducing dependency on imports while expanding healthcare access across the country.
“If we get it right, we will transform this industry, create jobs, reduce dependency, compete globally, and deliver healthcare locally,” he said.
