The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has condemned the rate at which antibiotics are being abused in Nigeria.
A statement on Sunday by the agency’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, said the Director-General of NAFDAC, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, spoke
on Friday at the virtual 2021 World Antimicrobial Resistance Week anniversary with the theme, ‘Spread Awareness Stop Resistance’.
According to the statement, Adeyeye gave a strong warning against abuse of antibiotics, noting that if allowed to continue, antimicrobial resistance could lead to death.
Adeyeye said “the war against AMR has not only gained global attention but also become a battle the human race must win.”
The statement read, “I am delighted to be part of this battle and welcome all our esteemed stakeholders to the frontline. Creating awareness amid us all is a major step in AMR stewardship by relevant stakeholders to effectively stop resistance.”
“NAFDAC is using the stakeholders’ meeting to mark its participation in the 2021 WAAW, targeting professionals in the healthcare sector, veterinarians, animal husbandry professionals, plant pathologists and individuals that use antimicrobial agents.
“AMR is the ability of a pathogenic microorganism to resist the effect of antimicrobial agents when used to treat internal or external infections in human and animal populations.”
Adeyeye said the fight against AMR requires collective efforts that are interlinked along with the One-Health Concept. To this end, she said NAFDAC, in its regulatory activities, has put in place regulatory measures to curb the spread of AMR.
“It is very necessary and extremely important to ensure food safety and food security, a safe environment, and healthy citizens in our dear country,” she said, noting that everyone in the healthcare, livestock production and environmental management sub-sectors of the economy is directly or indirectly involved in curbing AMR.
However, the NAFDAC boss reiterated the agency’s allegiance to ensuring that only safe and wholesome food, drugs, and other regulated products are available to Nigerians.
According to her, the agency is more dedicated to the delivery of quality services to stakeholders, hence its slogan: ‘Customer Focused…Agency Minded’.
Also, she mentioned that the agency seeks to strengthen collaboration with stakeholders, ministries, departments and agencies at state and federal levels toward more effective regulation and active involvement in creating awareness about AMR.
“Ignorance or non-conformism among professionals will be a serious setback to ending the spread of AMR?” She said.