In determining our future plans, we shall be guided by the need to consolidate on our present gains, remove disabling constraints, improve our administrative and operational capacities, and explore new approaches and ways to enhance our efficiency and effectiveness. To this end, we intend to embark on the development of a functional and effective management information system to better coordinate the activities of the Agency.

We plan to establish mini laboratories at the designated ports of entry (Apapa, Calabar, Kano, and Lagos), for on-the-spot detection of fake drugs and other substandard regulated products, and to reduce the delays inherent in sending samples from the ports to the various laboratories. Thus, only products or raw materials that require further testing would be delayed, while those that pass the on-the-spot quality check would be approved for release into the country.
Other plans include the establishment of laboratory facilities in all the geopolitical zones of the country and their continuous upgrade to international standards; we also plan to establish new specialized laboratories, such as a Biochemical Laboratory, to enable the Agency to collaborate with the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime.
We have plans to develop expertise in the detection of Genetically Modified Food (GMO foods), regulation of the irradiation of food and expansion of facilities for detection and quantitation, bacteriological typing (such as Listeria E. coli 0157), BSE (Mad Cow Disease) detection and control, Dioxins, and PCB detection, and Immuno Assay Techniques.
It is proposed that NAFDAC’s laboratories will serve as reference laboratories in the West African sub region, in collaboration with IAEA, WHO, FAO, and other relevant international organizations. Currently, a project has been proposed to IAEA for collaboration in the area of quality assurance systems in NAFDAC’s laboratories that will lead to the accreditation of NAFDAC’s laboratories.

Our plans also include computerization and streamlining of registration and other processes to further reduce the turn-around time to the barest minimum. Specifically, we shall implement of SIAMED computer network programme for drug registration by WHO; reduce unregistered products in circulation through enhanced surveillance, monitoring and enforcement; and provide improved guidelines for effective regulation and control of storage, distribution, sale and use of drugs, and other regulated products. To this end, we intend to develop reliable databases for drug storage, distribution, sale and use.
We plan to complete the Networking of NAFDAC operations in the states, zones and headquarters to ensure a free flow of timely information and access to databases on NAFDAC activities and operations. We shall establish functional and state of the art data banks and documentation centre, and establish a self-funding food and drug training institute, with the initial funding to be borne by NAFDAC. The institute would train NAFDAC staff, State Government Inspectors, and Analysts. It could also serve as a training centre for all food and drug regulatory agencies in West Africa.
We hope to strengthen our national and international collaboration with other regulatory and similar agencies for enhanced effectiveness; expand NAFDAC operations to all the local government areas in the country for better connection to the grass roots; establish NAFDAC offices in the port towns of Burutu, Koko and Bomadi and at the land borders of Mfun in Cross River State and Jibiya in Katsina State; expand the Export section of the Ports Inspection Directorate; provide additional office space and storage space for seized goods and equipment; and sustain employee commitment and transparency through staff motivation and appropriate incentives, such as the enhanced salary scale and welfare packages; and the hiring of additional staff in all directorates.

Other goals we have set include:

• Strengthening of staff capacity building through training and re-training of staff in regulatory control and management functions, in keeping with the high premium which the Agency places on its staff development.
• Continuous update of NAFDAC laboratories.
• Provision of incinerators to prevent the problems encountered currently during destruction exercises, such as scavenging, pollution of the environment and poorly managed dumpsites. We will need to acquire incinerators for our destruction exercises, one each in Lagos, Enugu and Kano.
• Job rotation techniques whereby technical directorate staff will be reshuffled once every three or four years to eliminate monotony on the job. This presents staff with new challenges, which is expected to enhance productivity.
• Training in security and self-defense, which will expose the staff of the Enforcement Directorate to security related courses. This will decrease their apparent vulnerability, and dependence on the police to provide security for effectiveness in enforcement activities.
• Strengthening of effective post release surveillance activities to guarantee the sale of only genuine registered regulated products in Nigeria.
• Review of the current Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to incorporate new ideas that would improve communication between NAFDAC and its clients and amongst NAFDAC staff themselves.
• Strengthening of the Food and Drug Information Centres, and establishment of Zonal or State Centres.
• Development of tamper-proof security systems for the protection of NAFDAC’s regulatory instruments, such as registration numbers, receipts, certificates, I.D. cards and permits. We are exploring various product security options, including the use of Tamper Evident Holograms for regulated products.
• Extension of drug abuse seminars and enlightenment campaigns conducted in schools to work places, for civil servants, local government staff and factory workers.
• Harmonization of the control of chemicals with other agencies, such as the Federal Ministry of Environment and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.
• Effective monitoring of importation, distribution, storage, sale and utilization of narcotics, psychotropic and precursor chemical and solvents nationwide.
• Change of the format of narcotics authorization and clearance so as to replace the existing obsolete system.
• Provision of a list of all chemical marketers nationwide, including their products and locations.
• Sustainance of NAFDAC enlightenment campaigns at secondary schools.
• Ensuring the enactment and amendment of various draft bills forwarded to the National Assembly in the shortest possible time.
• Inclusion of members of the Legal unit in the Codex Alimentarius and World Trade Organization.
  Our dream is the reduction of fake drugs and counterfeit products to the barest minimum. Our ultimate goal is to eradicate fake drugs and other substandard regulated products from Nigeria and for NAFDAC to be a model regulatory Agency in Africa. To this end, we shall continue to consolidate our present strategies, which have proved very effective. We also intend to follow and keep pace with the global dynamics in drugs and other regulated products’ regulation and control. We will continue to involve our stakeholders and consumers in the formulation of our future strategies. We are determined to borrow the best practices from around the world and to combine them with our own ideas in order to fashion out the most suitable regulatory system in Nigeria for Nigerians. We hope to realize our goals in such a manner that would make our slogan, “NAFDAC; Safeguarding the Health of the Nation,” ring true.