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As prices soar to N93.5m, NAPPMED seeks FG intervention
By Doris Obinna
Lagos State’s pharmaceutical supply chain faces a crisis as over 3,000 members of the National Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers (NAPPMED) have raised the alarm over their exclusion from the Coordinated Wholesale Centre (CWC) project in Ijora Badia.
The traders claim that despite contributing financially to the development of the CWC, they are now being sidelined by private interests who have allegedly taken control of the project.
During a rally held on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Lagos, the dealers warned that unless urgent action is taken to approve and develop a second CWC, the state could face a severe breakdown in drug distribution. They called on both the Federal and Lagos State Governments, as well as regulatory bodies such as the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria (PCN) and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), to intervene immediately.
Chairman, NAPPMED’s Liberation Zone, Lagos Island, Osita Nwajide, told journalists that the CWC was originally conceived as a fair and regulated hub for pharmaceutical wholesale operations. However, he said the reality on the ground paints a disturbing picture.
According to him, the land for the CWC was acquired through collective contributions from genuine pharmaceutical marketers, but those same contributors are now being priced out and excluded from the very marketplace they helped build.
He said the centre currently under development offers only 720 shops, which is grossly inadequate for the more than 3,000 licensed marketers operating in the Lagos Island area alone. Nwajide added that prices for shop units have soared to as high as ₦93.5 million, making it nearly impossible for small- and medium-scale drug traders to afford entry into the new facility.
He warned that this situation not only undermines fair competition but also threatens the overall integrity and security of the drug supply chain in Lagos State.
Also, a founding member of the association, Dr Gabriel Onyejamwa, stated that the title of the land was originally held in trust for the medicine dealers but was later transferred to City Pharmaceuticals under questionable circumstances. Onyejamwa, who is also one of the original planners of the CWC, further disclosed that several attempts to engage the current management of the CWC have proven futile, and that many long-standing members have been completely excluded from the planning and allocation process.
NAPPMED officials cautioned that the continued marginalisation of legitimate pharmaceutical marketers could result in the re-emergence of informal and unregulated drug markets across the state. They warned that the exclusion of thousands of compliant medicine dealers from formal operations could create openings for counterfeit drugs to flood the market, posing serious risks to public health and safety.
The association is demanding immediate government intervention to establish a second Coordinated Wholesale Centre that is inclusive, affordable, and transparent. They are also advocating for the implementation of capped shop rental rates that would enable low- and mid-income operators to participate, and for regulatory oversight that ensures accountability and prevents future abuses.
Speaking on behalf of the affected traders, Onyejamwa stressed that equitable access to drug distribution channels is a matter of national security, not a privilege to be sold to the highest bidder. He urged all relevant authorities to act swiftly to prevent the collapse of Lagos’s pharmaceutical distribution network and safeguard the health of millions of Nigerians.
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