By Ifeyinwa Ogwo
The Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, has called on the Pharmaceutical Society to strengthen its collaboration with the state in the fight against fake drugs. “I request and ask this noble profession to join us as partners in finding these fake and counterfeit medicines, having the best standards of professionalism and tightening the professional scrutiny of the behaviour of members.”
The governor made the remark at the 99th Annual National Conference of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), themed “One Health, One Pharmacy: Bridging Knowledge, Practice and Policy for National Impact.” The conference was held at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Awka on November 3.
He observed that many pharmacy shops operate under the name without having a registered pharmacist on-site. “In many places, you will find a pharmacy shop where there is a registered professional pharmacist whose license is hanging there, and people believe that if you go to those shops, you cannot find fake or substandard medicine because a pharmacist is in charge. But in some shops, you will still see a pharmacist’s license, yet no pharmacist is there.
“This was also observed when the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) raided the open shops at Onitsha; several of them were pharmacy shops, and when it was checked, it was observed that there was a distant pharmacist who was covering the shops. So I think if NAFDAC raids any shop again and discovers such, the name and license of the pharmacist covering the shop should be looked into. We cannot just punish the dealer alone,” he said.
Governor Soludo announced that primary healthcare centres in the state have been revamped, and more than 1,500 pharmacists, doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals have been recruited to work in state general hospitals. He added that maternal care, antenatal and postnatal care, and caesarean operations are provided at no cost across all government healthcare facilities in the state.
He noted that about 250,071 pregnant women had benefited from free maternal care, while 956 had received free caesarean operations, all with near-zero mortality. “We have completed a state-of-the-art general medical store in partnership with some key stakeholders to guarantee flawless management, secure storage, distribution and tracking of pharmaceuticals across the state.
“Anambra is driving the development of a massive, coordinated pharmaceutical wholesale centre at Oba because we are intentional about cementing our leadership as the pharmaceutical headquarters in Nigeria,” he stated.
The PSN President Pharm. Ayuba Ibrahim Tanko, thanked the Governor and all the dignitaries present. He noted that the conference marked another important milestone in the collective effort to strengthen the pharmacy profession, advance healthcare delivery and contribute meaningfully to national development.
“As we gather under the theme, “One Health, One Pharmacy: Bridging Knowledge, Practice and Policy for National Impact,” we reaffirm our commitment to a pharmacy profession that is responsive to the evolving health needs of Nigerians, grounded in scientific evidence and positioned to contribute to sustainable health system transformation,” he said.
The event featured an awards presentation and cultural dance performance.
Ifeyinwa Ogwo is of the Ministry of Information and Value Reformation, Anambra State
