How I Transformed NAFDAC From ‘Good-For-Nothing’ Agency — DG

The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, has dismissed calls for her resignation, saying the agency has recorded significant institutional transformation since she assumed office.

Adeyeye said NAFDAC had moved from “maturity minus one, level one out of four” when she took over to maturity level three, a status she described as a major achievement for the regulatory agency.

The NAFDAC boss stated this in a video shared by Channels Television on Tuesday while responding to a question on whether she intended to step down amid calls from some quarters for her resignation.

According to her, she had already served for nine years, including her first tenure, which ended in 2022, and had faced opposition and internal challenges during her time in office.

Adeyeye described 2022 as “a bad year” and “a horrible year,” alleging that some individuals, including members of staff, were instigated to embark on a strike between June and November of that year in an attempt to discredit her administration.

“This is my ninth year. When I got to NAFDAC, NAFDAC had maturity minus one, level one out of four,” she said.

The DG said she inherited about $3.2 billion in debts when she assumed office, comprising approximately $1.6 billion in unpaid taxes owed to the government, about $700 million owed to staff who travelled for Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) inspections, and about $400 million owed to contractors.

She said the agency also recorded about 700 travels in 2017 alone, prompting her to introduce measures to curb spending and prioritise the settlement of outstanding liabilities.

“I said, no more travel until we pay our debts. We paid $3.1 billion by November 2018. The other money was fictitious. We didn’t pay that,” she said.

Adeyeye said her decision to settle the agency’s liabilities was informed by her personal conviction that government institutions should not remain indebted.

“People asked me, why are you paying debts? We don’t pay debts here. I said, I was brought up not to owe, not to be a slave to the lender,” she added.

The NAFDAC DG also highlighted the poor state of the agency’s infrastructure and equipment when she assumed office, saying between 70 and 80 per cent of its equipment was not functional.

She further claimed that companies were providing vehicles to transport NAFDAC officials to inspection sites, while directors of the agency did not have laptops procured by NAFDAC.

Adeyeye said the agency subsequently embarked on reforms that improved its regulatory standing internationally.

According to her, NAFDAC attained maturity level three in March 2022, becoming the third agency in Africa to achieve the status.

She also said the agency became an affiliate member of the International Medical Device Regulators Forum in 2023 and joined the International Council for Harmonisation in 2025.

Adeyeye said NAFDAC’s international recognition had also improved considerably, noting that the agency was now ranked among leading regulatory institutions globally.

“We have 194 agencies across the world. NAFDAC became number 24, and they have only 25 members there. Countries now respect us. Regulatory agencies respect us,” she said.

The DG said one of her priorities when she assumed office was to change the negative perception of NAFDAC and rebuild confidence in the agency.

She recalled that the agency was previously described by some people as a “good for nothing agency,” adding that the achievement of maturity level three represented a significant reversal of that perception.

Adeyeye also recalled an incident during her first official trip to South Africa, where she said the Nigerian delegation travelled in a small bus.

According to her, someone jokingly remarked that previous NAFDAC delegations would have been unable to fill the vehicle because of the size of their contingents and the allowances associated with official travel.

The DG attributed some of the challenges facing public institutions to what she described as a culture of personal gain rather than public service.

“I lived in the U.S for 37 years. I was a professor for 30 years in an all-white school. I retired happily. I came here to serve,” she said.

Adeyeye criticised what she described as an attitude among some Nigerians of asking what personal benefit they could derive from public office or government contracts.

“Nigerians have a version for service. Some Nigerians have a version for service. It is for what can I get from the country,” she said.

She also challenged any contractor who had allegedly been asked for money by her to come forward and make such allegations publicly.

The NAFDAC chief maintained that her record at the agency should be assessed based on the reforms and institutional progress recorded under her leadership.