WHO commends NAFDAC pharmacovigilance centres

26.08.2008

World Health Organisation (WHO) collaborating centre for international drug monitoring has commended the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for coordinating an effective pharmacovigilance system in Nigeria.

With a total of 725 Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR) cases reported to the WHO Drug Monitoring Centre in Uppsala, Sweden, since inception in September 2004, NAFDAC’s Pharmacovigilance Centre is regarded by the WHO as “one of the most active and dynamic pharma-covigilance centres in Africa right now.”

The WHO’s Chief Programme Officer, Uppsala Monitoring Centre, Mr. Sten Olsson, who was impressed with NAFDAC’s four-year track record of performance, said Nigeria ’s Pharmacovigilance (ADR Monitoring) submission would be published in the next report of Uppsala collaborating centre.

Mr. Olsson said such publication would showcase NAFDAC’s pharmacovigilance centre as “good model” for other countries to emulate.

Reacting, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Professor Dora Akunyili, said the commendation was stimulating and had given the agency the required impetus to achieve more successes in pharmacovigilance reporting next year.