Posted on: Tue 28-07-2020

The Nigerian Association of Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Scientists in the Americas has called on the federal and state governments to invest in the building of strong health infrastructure.

According to a statement, the President of the association, Dr Anthony Ikeme, said this when the group presented coronavirus pandemic diagnostics, PPEs and other medical consumables to the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control.

Ikeme, who was represented by Dr Ali Onoja, said the systemic weaknesses and vulnerabilities in the nation’s health care sector must be fixed if the country must play a leading role in the global health and pharmaceutical enterprise.

He said, “Nations with strong health care infrastructure and a solid manufacturing base are beginning to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the pandemic to tap into the global medical and pharmaceutical products’ supply chain, following the collapse of China’s near-monopoly in that sector.

“We regret that Nigeria counts among the nations that missed out on the opportunities presented by the truncation of the global medical and pharmaceutical supply chain due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The lessons from the pandemic should inform our decisions going into the future. There is an urgent need for investment in the creation of robust protocols for preparedness, prevention and containment of pandemics as well as their related economic and social impacts.”

The Director-General of NCDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, who received the donations, thanked NAPPSA for the gesture. Ihekweazu said the NCDC was willing to partner NAPPSA and other professional bodies to strengthen the country’s health sector

Source: Punch

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