Nigeria has formally deposited its instrument of ratification of the African Medicines Agency (AMA) Treaty, becoming the 34th African Union member state to complete the process.

The development marks a significant step towards strengthening medicines regulation, improving public health protection and promoting pharmaceutical development across the continent.

The announcement was made by the African Union Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, Ambassador A. Twum-Amoah, during the inaugural African Medicines Agency Week held in Kigali, Rwanda, from October 25 to 30, 2026.

Nigeria was represented at the event by the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye, alongside senior officials of the agency.

The African Medicines Agency was established to strengthen the capacity of national and regional medicines regulatory authorities and promote greater coordination and harmonisation of medicines regulation across Africa.

The AMA Treaty, adopted in February 2019, seeks to improve cooperation among African countries, strengthen regulatory systems and support access to safe, effective, quality-assured and affordable medical products. The treaty entered into force in November 2021 after the required 15th ratification was deposited.

Speaking on Nigeria’s ratification, Adeyeye described the development as an important milestone for public health and pharmaceutical development in Africa.

She said Nigeria’s participation would strengthen collaboration between NAFDAC, the AMA and other national and regional regulatory institutions through information sharing, scientific cooperation and regulatory capacity development.

The NAFDAC director-general also said the move reinforces Nigeria’s commitment to combating substandard and falsified medical products, promoting pharmaceutical innovation and supporting local drug manufacturing.

The development is particularly significant as African countries continue to face challenges involving counterfeit and substandard medicines, fragmented regulatory systems and limited regulatory capacity.

A coordinated continental framework could help regulators share expertise and information, improve surveillance of medical products and strengthen cooperation in protecting consumers from unsafe medicines.

Nigeria’s participation could also support the country’s pharmaceutical industry by creating opportunities for greater regulatory cooperation and potentially reducing duplication in regulatory processes across African markets.

However, the ratification does not mean that medicines approved by NAFDAC will automatically receive approval in every other African country. Effective implementation will still depend on cooperation between the AMA and national regulatory authorities.

Adeyeye stressed that Nigeria’s ratification must translate into practical action through sustained institutional collaboration, regulatory capacity building, information sharing, scientific cooperation and effective implementation of the treaty.

She said the ultimate measure of the AMA’s success would be its contribution to ensuring that Africans have access to safe, effective, quality-assured and affordable medicines.

Nigeria’s entry as the 34th ratifying AU member therefore represents a major step towards a more coordinated medicines regulatory system and stronger pharmaceutical health security across Africa.