Pharma firms face fake-drugs charge in Nigeria

Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has accused 14 Indian companies of exporting fake and counterfeit drugs to the country.

Interestingly, NAFDAC has also accused five Chinese pharmaceutical companies of the same, saying that the revelations have come following "impeccable top-level federal security report and investigation by NAFDAC."

Meanwhile, the Pharmceutical Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil), the umbrella body of Indian pharmaceutical exporters, is defending the blacklisted companies by stating that the NAFDAC had taken the decision ex-parte, without hearing the companies concerned.

"Since the exporters in question have not been given an opportunity to explain their case and clear their name, there is an urgent need to seek a personal hearing for affected exporters to put forth their case before NAFDAC and establish their bona fide," said D B Mody, chairman of Pharmexcil. Eleven of the exporters are based in Maharashtra. While the other three are based in Gujarat, Chandigarh and Rajasthan, said a source close to NAFDAC.

A NAFDAC document in possession of Business Standard reveals that the authority has not only barred Nigerians from importing drugs from these 14 Indian and five Chinese companies but also has ordered that any drug/s imported from these companies would be seized and destroyed by Nafdac without any condition.

"The general public, particularly drug importers and distributors are hereby notified in their own interest, to stop dealings with the aforementioned companies," said the order.

On April 1, the pharmaceutical companies had convened a meeting in Mumbai under the chairmanship of Mody, in which all affected exporters unanimously decided to give a full factual report to Pharmexcil so that in the interest of exports the matter could be referred to the ministry of commerce as well as Indian Embassy in Nigeria.

The exporters also opined that given the strict monitoring of quality of drugs imported into Nigeria by the independent inspection agency nominated by the Nigerian authorities.

"It was surprising as to how Nigerian importers have managed to customs-clear such alleged fake and counterfeit drugs. The charge on the Indian companies that those have been persistently indulging in dumping of fake and counterfeit drugs into the country is also baseless," Mody said.

A Mumbai -based exporter said, "We are ready to send a team of representatives and these exporters to Nigeria to conduct tests, following the test protocols, in the presence of buyers in order to satisfactorily sort out the issue for mutual benefit of the two countries. "