The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA) and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), including other stakeholders in the health sector have concluded plans to collaborate and fight the menace of illicit drug production, trafficking, and use.
The plan was concluded Thursday at the launch and dissemination of the 2022 Annual Report of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) and Precursors Report 2022 in Lagos.
Speaking on the development, Director General (DG) NAFDAC, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, said narcotics and psychotropic substances are indispensable for the relief of pain and suffering and that they are controlled within the framework of the three international conventions as they possess abuse liability and produce dependence in users.
‘’They are classified not on chemical nature but on the potential for abuse and the need for medical use of the substance”, she said, adding that one of the control objectives is to ensure availability solely for medical and scientific uses while minimizing the possibility of diversion to illicit channels and abuse.
She said the policy thrust of the agency is to ensure availability, access and rational use while preventing illicit use and abuse. The international drug control conventions, she added, are thus interpreted to mean improved access to controlled medicines to enable countries meet their drug needs.
