News Investigators/ The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has urged members of the public to report adverse reactions of drugs on their health using the Med Safety App.
Kenneth Azikwe, Director of NAFDAC, North Central Zone, made the call during an engaged with stakeholders in Minna on Monday.
He said by reporting adverse reactions, stakeholders would be helping NAFDAC to identify and remove harmful products from the market, thereby protecting public health.
“Don’t keep quiet when you take a drug and you get a negative reaction to your body; report such products using your phone through the app.
“Once you complain, we have officers watching the app and an investigation will be launched immediately to withdraw the drug if it is not good,” he said.
Mr Azikwe said the agency had always emphasised on pharmacovigilance to ensure safety of consumers and promote responsible use of pharmaceutical products.
He noted that the agency believed in feedbacks hence stakeholders’s engagement to enhance regulatory activities and improve services rendered to the public.
He called on the stakeholders to embrace the NAFDAC Automated Product and Monitoring System (NAPMS), which enabled products registration online without physical presence
According to him, NAFDAC as a regulatory authority, has grown with the signs of time, urging companies to use NAPMAS to register their products as it is easier and cheaper.
The director also encouraged stakeholders to participate in the Micro Small Medium Enterprises Registration Scheme, which allowed the registration of low-risk food products using minimal facilities to guarantee the safety of the products.
He appealed to stakeholders to embrace the Green Book, a database of registered products.
He encouraged stakeholders to download the app into their phone, which could be used to search the name of a drug to know if such a drug was registered or not.
He appealed stakeholders to come forward as a group or association, particularly in the agrochemical and chemical sectors, to obtain the necessary licences and certifications to enable the agency control what people were doing with chemicals.
Mr James Kigbu, state Coordinator of NAFDAC in Niger, said the stakeholders’ engagement was crucial for fostering open dialogue and collaboration to ensure regulatory compliance, safety and responsible business practices.
“Your feedback today will help us in decision-making, improve processes and help us to manage your expectations,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that stakeholders at the engagement include the Agro Chemical Association, Industrial Pharmacy of Nigeria and Supermarket Owners Association.
Others are the Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprise, Islamic Medicine and Prophetic Medicine Association, and National Association of Environmental Health Officers of Nigeria.
NAN
