Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), has said that Nigeria has been certified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the production of vaccines.
The agency also stated that the country met the 868 requirements set by the global world health regulatory body.
Speaking during the ministerial press briefing on COVID-19 organised by the Ministry of Health in Abuja, Prof Adeyeye, added that the agency was trying to build new facilities in seven states.
She said:
“I am pleased to announce to you that Nigeria has received certification from the World Health Organisation to produce vaccine. We received the certification in October.
“We have been on this for close to two years and we met the 868 requirements set by the WHO and we have even been referenced globally with most countries referring to us as the Abuja principal. We also underwent training for close to one and a half years.”
READ ALSO: Suspected Government Agents Mark #EndSARS Protesters For Elimination
Adeyeye added:
“We were also told to expand our laboratories and as a result of this the government came to our aid. Similarly, we are also building offices across seven states of the federation.”
The NAFDAC DG added that the agency is working to rid the country of fake drugs.
This is coming about a month after the Country Manager Nigeria and Cluster Lead West Africa for Pfizer, Mr Olayinka Subair, said there is currently no technical capacity to develop a COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria.
Mr Subair described vaccine development as a long and technical process with high underlying costs.
He said:
“Vaccine development takes, on average, about 12 years. From discovery to experiments and trials, COVID-19 was an exceptional one as it was a global pandemic that needed a quick solution. At Pfizer, for example, most of the processes were done in parallel. Normally, the processes are meant to be done in sequence.
