The War Against Counterfeit Medicine: My Story

Chapter 10 - Strategy III: Engaging Stakeholders

77 CHAPTER 10 STRATEGYIII:ENGAGINGSTAKEHOLDERS Quite early on the job, I saw the need to take my message to the public, following the success we achieved with the pure water enlightenment campaign. It was clear to me that this strategy would help us sensitise the public to the high incidence of counterfeit medicines and engage the various stakeholders in frank and open discussions on the magnitude of the problem of counterfeit medicines and other substandard regulated products, with a view to finding sustainable solutions which would be acceptable to all. We employed the strategy of public enlightenment campaigns through workshops, seminars, publications, grassroots sensitisation campaigns and consultative meetings with stakeholders both at national and international levels. PublicEnlightenmentCampaign Most Nigerians were unaware of their right to good quality regulated products. The manufacturers and distributors of fake and substandard regulated products cashed in on the ignorance of the public and our regulatory inadequacies to dump unsafe products in Nigeria. Consequently, we embarked on massive enlightenment campaigns using dialogue, education and persuasion, to sensitise Nigerians on the dangers of fake and counterfeit regulated products. This strategy addressed the fundamental issue at stake, which is behavioural change. We involved various stakeholders within and outside Nigeria, ranging from pharmacists and other health practitioners to professional bodies, patent medicine dealers, traditional medicine practitioners, manufacturers, importers and exporters of NAFDAC regulated products, chemical marketers, bakers and hotel and fast-food restaurant operators. Others included government agencies, regulatory agencies, journalists, the judiciary, road transport employers and operators, financial institutions, educational institutions, the maritime industry, freight forwarding and clearing agents, printers, advertising practitioners, the diplomatic community, NGOs, youth groups, politicians, traditional rulers, religious leaders and groups, business associations, market associations and consumers. The print and electronic media were extensively used in the campaign. 78 The War Against Counterfeit Medicine We adopted public enlightenment as a strategy in the framework of information, education and communication, (IEC). The result-oriented campaigns, were our most effective approach towards eradicating fake products. They were designed to inform consumers, thereby empowering them to exercise their rights to good quality regulated products. We encouraged them to cultivate new habits such as scrutinising labels of regulated products for name and content of the product, NAFDAC registration number, batch number, manufacturing date, expiry or “Best Before” date, manufacturers’ full name and address and any other relevant information. We increased our staff strength at the Food and Drug Information Centre (FDIC) and improved our information technology capacity to disseminate information on our activities to the public. Important alert notices of identified fake products were disseminated through print and electronic media, the NAFDAC website and quarterly bulletin and bi-monthly newspaper publications. We also disseminated information using billboards, jingles, announcements and advertisements in the media. Grassroots mobilisation campaigns for the rural areas kicked off in February 2005 in Kano State, and were replicated nationwide. We produced different kinds of publications, handbills and posters, both in English and in other local languages, to reach our target audience. Workshops and Seminars The workshops and seminars organised for various stakeholders were interactive in nature and encouraged contribution of ideas from participants. In this regard, we have traversed the length and breadth of Nigeria and covered diverse subject matters. The following are a few examples of the workshops and seminars we organised for some key stakeholders: Producers of Packaged Water and Other Water-Based Drinks The production of packaged water popularly called pure water grew rapidly in Nigeria because of the simple techniques involved in its production. The water is packaged in low-density polyethylene sachets to make it cheaper and more readily available for the lower income segment of the population. The production has low capital requirements. The abundance of free water sources in Nigeria, coupled with the high unemployment rate, the tropical heat, high demand for water by the over 140 million-strong population and lack of potable water in many areas, made the production of pure water an attractive venture. By 2001, very few brands of packaged water were certified by NAFDAC and a large number were contaminated. The general expectation of the public was that NAFDAC should arrest Strategy III: Engaging Stakeholders 79 the illegal producers, close their pure water factories and prosecute them, to raise standards in packaged water production in Nigeria. However, we needed to balance Nigerians’ rights to potable water against the high unemployment rate and the desire by pure water producers to earn...