The Zamfara State Government has intensified efforts to curb the illegal sale and hawking of medicines, describing the practice as a threat to public health. The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Nafisa Muhammad Maradun, stated this at a stakeholders’ meeting in Gusau on strengthening regulation, enforcement and public awareness on the dangers of illegal medicine sales. Maradun, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Alhaji Rilwanu Musa Zurmi, said the government’s investments in healthcare infrastructure and manpower could be undermined if residents patronised fake, substandard or improperly handled medicines. “Our infrastructure has been developed, but the major challenge is that after all these investments in the health sector, a client may end up with fake medicine, and that is a great challenge in our state,” she said. She warned that medicine hawking could expose residents to wrong dosages, misuse of antibiotics, antimicrobial resistance and treatment failure. The commissioner said the proposed action plan would combine tighter regulation of the pharmaceutical supply chain, public enlightenment and enforcement of relevant laws. The Director of Pharmaceutical Services in the ministry, Pharmacist Mas’ud Isah, outlined the legal framework regulating the sale and distribution of medicines, including the mandate of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC). Isah called for increased intelligence sharing among regulatory agencies, security forces, traditional institutions and market associations to identify and tackle illegal medicine dealers. He stressed the need for coordinated action to ensure that only authorised persons and premises engage in the sale and distribution of medicines. Participants at the meeting included representatives of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN), NAFDAC, National Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers (NAPMED), Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN), police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), religious and traditional institutions as well as labour unions. The stakeholders pledged support for the government’s efforts, while urging authorities to ensure that enforcement measures were fairly implemented without unnecessarily targeting legitimate pharmaceutical businesses. The state government said the initiative was aimed at strengthening the safety of medicines available to residents and protecting investments made in the health sector.
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