The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has made a major breakthrough in the fight against illegal herbal medicine production in Nigeria. On Wednesday, NAFDAC investigators, in collaboration with its Kaduna state office, raided and shut down the Baban Aisha herbal production factory located in the Tafa community, along the Kaduna-Abuja road.
The operation was triggered by a complaint received by NAFDAC regarding the activities of the production factory. Umar Sulaiman, the team leader of the Federal Task Force for Investigative and Enforcement, explained that the raid was part of the agency’s routine work to safeguard the nation’s health.
“We went into action after conducting investigations and discovered several violations of the Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) at the factory,” Sulaiman said. “These violations included production of herbal medicine with an expired license, illegal production of unregistered products, and poor hygiene practices.”
The factory, named Sacramultilink Ltd., is owned by Dr Salisu Sani, also known as Nawagini Baban Aisha, who is renowned for selling herbal medicine. Sulaiman further highlighted that the facility had been registered with NAFDAC for only one product. However, the owner had taken advantage of this approval and produced other products using the same registration number, a clear violation of best practices.
Upon inspection, NAFDAC officials found evidence of non-compliance even after previous directives had been given to the factory. The state coordinator of NAFDAC, Nasiru Mato, disclosed that the product license for Baban Aisha had expired in 2018 and the owner had applied for its renewal. However, investigations revealed that the product had fallen below GMP standards and did not meet consumer expectations.
Consequently, NAFDAC sealed the entire premises and confiscated equipment and facilities used for production. Some of the items seized were HD injection polythene, HDPE polythene, packaging bottles, and equipment used for advertising the products.
It is worth noting that the ongoing renovation at the factory may have been motivated by a viral video created by an investigative journalist, exposing Baban Aisha’s production of substandard local herbs.
The closure of the Baban Aisha herbal production factory is a significant step towards ensuring that only safe and effective medicinal products reach the Nigerian market. NAFDAC continues to be committed to its mission of protecting human health by ensuring compliance with established regulations and standards.
