Pharmacists Charge FG to Invest More on Petrochemical Industry

The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has called on the federal government to stimulate a functional petrochemical industry through improved investment to guarantee desired revolution in the pharmaceutical sector of the country’s economy.

Speaking at the 95th Annual Conference of the PSN in Jos, the President of the society, Prof. Cyril Usifoh, emphasised on the need to encourage the production of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), excipients and equivalents, as well as packaging materials in efforts to attain medicine sufficiency, security and enhance the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GPD) through local manufacturing of drugs.

He said, “We encourage the federal government to stimulate a functional petrochemical industry that guarantees an industrial revolution beyond the pharma industry.

“We must become primary producers of APIs, excipients, equivalents, packaging materials and all other finished products in a determined bid to attain medicine sufficiency and security.”

He challenged the presidential candidates of the political parties for the forthcoming general election to “begin to look at how to fast-track new but substantial investments in healthcare.’’

According to him, the pharmaceutical sector offers the biggest prospects in this regard.

Prof. Usifoh expressed PSN’s gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari for assenting to the Pharmacy Bill, describing it as a landmark.

“We convey our gratitude to the federal government and most especially President Muhammadu Buhari GCFR for his landmark assent to the Pharmacy Bill.’’

He said that the Pharmacy Bill will redress the intractable fake drug syndrome in the country.

“The Pharmacy Bill has the propensity to restore normalcy to our indecorous drug distribution channels which have made Nigeria famous for the fake drug syndrome,’’ he said.

The challenge, he further said, is surmountable through proactive action of adequate funding of the PCN and other agencies that regulate the drug distribution channels, especially National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

He reiterated the need to sustain audit trails of drug distribution in the country.

“We must maintain audit trails of drug distribution from manufacturers and importers to distributors, retailers, PMV dealers, and hospitals in the public and private sectors. Once we begin to monitor and control the value chain in drug distribution endeavours, then our journey to fulfillment commences.’’

Reacting to the declaration of some concerned stakeholders in health to develop a holistic Academic Pharmacy resource template in Nigeria, Usifoh explained that the PSN is leading initiatives to establish the National Post-graduate College of Pharmacists.

“Our goal is to restructure the totality of the relationship management architecture between the post-graduate college and universities through appropriate regulatory platforms in the education sector, for new benefits packages to accrue to all concerned in the training process of Pharmacists of both undergraduate and Postgraduate levels.’’

“We must continue to appreciate recent gains that have manifested in the approval of the PharmD degree, Consultant cadre in Hospital Pharmacy practice as well as the recent payment of arrears of hazard allowances to Hospital Pharmacists in FHIs,” he added.

He assured all stakeholders of a mutually beneficial relationship for the collective gains.

“We shall encourage new collaborations between NIPRD, Drug Research and Production Units (DRPUs), Centres for Drug Discovery (CDD) as well as related structures in the Universities and the generality of the local Pharma Industry to ensure that research endeavours begin to receive fresh momentum,’’ he said.