(3 minutes read)
- Pharmacists in Nigeria said that the impact of COVID-19 on the pharmaceutical sector was severe
- The hike in prices of drugs, they say, is due to the current pandemic
- Over 65 per cent of pharmaceutical raw materials and finished products being used in the country were imported from China and India
Pharmacists in Nigeria said that the impact of COVID-19 on the pharmaceutical sector was severe. The hike in prices of drugs, they say, is due to the current pandemic. Over 65 per cent of pharmaceutical raw materials and finished products being used in the country were imported from China and India.
Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria, said the hike was due to Covid-19 and the erratic exchange rate adding that drugs sold around US$10 are now sold for about US$20.
Since the advent of the covid-19, there are lots of drugs that one cannot access. Importers or even indigenous manufacturers maintain that the cost of raw materials went up due to ban on availability of some raw materials. Experts say the hike in prices of drugs may affect the delivery of quality health care as a result of the influx of counterfeit drugs.
Pharmaceutical companies maintain that to fight the situation, the government has to be involved especially the regulatory bodies. The security people in the country have to get involved to form alliance with them (Pharmacists) because some pharmacies in Nigeria are not being managed by real pharmacists. Over 70 per cent of what the country use in producing drugs are imported from China, India and Europe. The drug market transactions in Nigeria depend solely on foreign exchange.
