Nigeria Must Shore Up Local Drug Manufacturing – PMGMAN

Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (PMG-MAN) has stressed the urgent need for Nigeria to strengthen local pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity as global supply chain disruptions and rising healthcare security concerns continue to threaten access to medicines.

The chairman of the 8th Nigerian Pharma Manufacturers Expo and managing director and chief executive of May & Baker Nigeria Plc, Dr Patrick Ajah, stated this during a press briefing in Lagos ahead of the 2026 edition of the pharmaceutical exhibition.

Ajah said recent global developments, including the lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing geopolitical tensions affecting major shipping routes such as the Strait of Hormuz, have exposed the dangers of excessive dependence on imported medicines.

According to him, countries prioritised their domestic healthcare needs during the pandemic, leaving import-dependent nations vulnerable to shortages and rising costs.

“We saw during COVID that countries took care of themselves first before thinking about others. What is happening around the Strait of Hormuz further confirms the urgent need for Nigeria to encourage local manufacturing,” he said.

He noted that Nigeria’s pharmaceutical sector is gradually witnessing a shift from heavy import dependence to increased local production, as more indigenous manufacturers expand their production capacity and new pharmaceutical factories emerge across the country.

Ajah explained that while Nigeria previously relied on about 70 per cent imported medicines against 30 per cent local production, the trend is changing in favour of domestic manufacturing.

“More companies are joining PMG-MAN and more factories are springing up. This shows that government policies and our advocacy efforts are beginning to yield results,” he stated.

He further explained that the PMG-MAN Expo remains distinct from other pharmaceutical exhibitions because it focuses exclusively on promoting local pharmaceutical manufacturing rather than imported finished products.

According to him, foreign participants expected at the exhibition would mainly consist of equipment manufacturers, machine suppliers and firms supporting pharmaceutical production processes. “We are focused strictly on local manufacturing. We will not exhibit imported finished pharmaceutical products,” Ajah added.

The PMG-MAN chairman also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for approving an executive order waiving import duties on pharmaceutical raw materials and active pharmaceutical ingredients used by local manufacturers.

He said the policy intervention had helped pharmaceutical firms cushion the impact of foreign exchange volatility and escalating raw material costs, thereby slowing the pace of increases in medicine prices.

“The executive order has been very helpful. With fluctuations in foreign exchange and raw material costs, many companies would have increased prices more aggressively. But the waiver has helped us slow down those increases,” he said.

Also speaking, Executive Secretary of PMG-MAN, Pharmacist Frank Muonemeh, described the 8th Nigerian Pharma Manufacturers Expo as a strategic international platform aimed at advancing pharmaceutical and life sciences manufacturing across Africa.

Muonemeh disclosed that the exhibition, organised in partnership with technical partners GP India, would bring together stakeholders from across five continents to explore investment opportunities, technology transfer, contract manufacturing, market access and pharmaceutical localisation.