The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has issued a directive banning the clearance of pharmaceutical products through bonded terminals nationwide. The Customs Comptroller-General, Adewale Adeniyi, made the announcement in Lagos while officially handing over 25 seized containers of unregistered and prohibited pharmaceuticals to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
According to Adeniyi, the service has designated only four terminals as authorized entry points for pharmaceutical consignments: Apapa Port, Onne Port, Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, and Ports & Terminal Multipurpose Limited (PTML). The decision, he said, was driven by the urgent need to enhance monitoring and stem the flow of counterfeit or unregulated medicines into the country.
“This decision is rooted in the sensitive nature of pharmaceutical imports,” Adeniyi said. “We are prioritizing safety and national health security, and we will no longer allow pharmaceutical products to be stemmed into off-dock or bonded terminals for clearance.”
The Comptroller-General emphasized that the NCS had observed abuses of prior concessions allowing pharmaceutical imports through bonded terminals. He explained that such routes had become loopholes for unscrupulous importers to bring in substandard or unregistered medicines, undermining the regulatory framework of the country.
He said that the revised policy now mandates that all pharmaceutical imports be cleared directly at the approved terminals, with customs duties paid and physical inspections conducted on site before release.
“We are no longer permitting stemmed or diverted clearance of pharmaceutical goods. This is a high-priority national interest area,” Adeniyi noted. “We can allow other cargo through bonded terminals, but not pharmaceuticals.”
The revised directive is expected to significantly disrupt the logistics of drug importation, particularly for traders who had hitherto leveraged bonded facilities for speed or convenience. However, industry observers believe the decision will help combat the proliferation of unapproved drugs and curb smuggling disguised as legitimate importation.
Stakeholders in Nigeria’s health and logistics sectors have long called for tighter control over the pharmaceutical importation value chain. In 2024 alone, NAFDAC and Customs reported multiple seizures of falsified medicines smuggled through unauthorized channels, many of them with forged clearance documents.
NAFDAC has repeatedly warned that unregistered drugs pose major health risks to Nigerians, including treatment failure, drug resistance, and in some cases, fatalities.
With this new policy, collaboration between NCS and NAFDAC is expected to deepen. A source at NAFDAC told our reporter that the agency welcomes the move, describing it as “a bold and timely intervention that will strengthen drug quality assurance across Nigeria’s ports of entry.”
While the decision has drawn praise from health advocates, some freight forwarders and logistics operators have expressed concern about potential delays and congestion at the four designated terminals.
Speaking anonymously, one freight handler said: “This will likely slow down processing, especially at peak import seasons. But we understand the intention—to sanitize the system.”
Others have called for expanded infrastructure and improved inspection efficiency at the approved terminals to prevent backlogs.
Meanwhile, experts say the move aligns with global best practices. Countries with high medicine import rates often implement stringent controls to prevent their populations from being exposed to harmful or ineffective pharmaceuticals.
This development marks a new phase in Nigeria’s fight against counterfeit drugs and regulatory breaches in the pharmaceutical industry. The Customs Service has pledged to strictly enforce the policy and warned that defaulters will face prosecution.
Adeniyi concluded with a strong message to importers: “We are committed to reforming our systems to ensure only safe, registered, and approved pharmaceutical products reach Nigerian consumers. There is no room for compromise.”
As this policy takes effect, stakeholders will be watching closely to see how enforcement unfolds and whether the four designated terminals can handle the anticipated cargo volume without compromising speed, compliance, or integrity.