Juliet Jacob 
ABUJA, Nigeria – The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is warning the Rivers State Government to urgently strengthen enforcement of Nigeria’s National Pharmacovigilance Policy as drug misuse among young people rises sharply.
In a statement on Wednesday, NAFDAC’s Director of Pharmacovigilance, Dr Uchenna Elemuwa, criticises low compliance across public and private health facilities. She stresses that every institution is legally required to report adverse drug reactions. “The policy clearly spells out the responsibility of every health institution,” she says, urging full implementation across all levels of care.
Dr Elemuwa raises particular concern about escalating drug abuse among young people and calls on families to take greater responsibility. “Parents and guardians must be more vigilant. Drug abuse is becoming a serious threat, and we cannot afford to ignore it,” she says.
The warning follows a grassroots sensitisation programme involving the Rivers State Ministry of Health, community leaders, health workers and NAFDAC Corps members. Discussions centred on medicine-safety reporting, while corps members staged a drama exposing the dangers of drug misuse.
NAFDAC says full pharmacovigilance enforcement is essential to identifying harmful medicines, reducing overdose cases and improving treatment safety across Rivers State.
About the Author
Mirian Gom 
Hussaini Ibrahim 
Oluwatobi Adu 
Edino Chubiyo Cornelius