Center for Health Market Innovations (CHMI)

Programs

West Africa Drug Regulatory Authority Network (WADRAN)

last updated Sep 27, 2011

Overview

Legal Status: 
State/government
Year Launched: 
2001
Stage: 
Existing/expansion stage
Summary: 

The West Africa Drug Regulatory Authority Network (WADRAN) aims to combat counterfeit drugs on a regional level through the exchange of information and strategies between countries and the creation of regionally harmonized regulatory efforts.

Program goals/rationale: 

The regional effort was propelled by the relocation of drug counterfeiters to other West African countries after they had been removed from Nigeria. In Nigeria, the penalties for producing, importing or distributing fake drugs range from imprisonment of 3 months to 5 years, or a USD 70 to 3600 fine.

Key program components: 

Since its initiation, facilitated by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) of Nigeria, the forum has helped set regional standards and processes for drug registration in order to facilitate the entry of larger manufacturers with higher-quality products and enable facilities such as bioequivalence laboratories to be leveraged across the region. Other successes of the NAFDAC to date include:

  • Counterfeit drugs in circulation have dropped from an average of over 41% in 2001 to 16.7% in 2006.
  • Drugs not registered with NAFDAC are about 19% of all drugs on the market, as against 68% in 2001.
  • Production capacities of local pharmaceutical industries have greatly increased and their number has risen from 70 to 150 in 6 years. They now cover 40% of local pharmaceutical needs, as opposed to 25% in 2001.
  • Multinational Pharmaceutical Companies are retuning to Nigeria due to the improved regulatory environment.
  • The ban on "made-in-Nigeria" drugs has been lifted by other West African countries.
  • In the last 6 years, NAFDAC has carried out 110 destruction exercises of counterfeit and substandard products valued at about 150 million USD.

[This information is based on 2007 data.]

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