The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has called on Nigerians to join the fight against the circulation of counterfeit and fake medical products through its new verification application, Greenbook.
NAFDAC Director-General, Mojisola Adeyeye, made the call this Wednesday at the opening ceremony of a two-day sensitisation and awareness workshop on the Greenbook, traceability project, and paediatric policy in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Adeyeye, represented by Fraden Bitrus, Director of NAFDAC’s Post-Marketing Surveillance Directorate, said the Greenbook is a comprehensive online database of registered drug products in Nigeria. She explained that it was developed to counter the increasingly sophisticated methods used by counterfeiters.
“Counterfeiters have become more sophisticated in advancing their trade,” Adeyeye said.
“The agency is committed to using technology and modern methods to mitigate their activities, making stakeholder sensitisation essential.”
She explained that users of the Greenbook can verify a product’s authenticity by searching with the product name, brand name, or registration number.
“If the product is listed in the Greenbook, it signifies it has been registered by NAFDAC and is considered authentic,” she noted.
She said Nigeria is the first country in Africa and the second in the world to deploy this technology.
Adeyeye urged stakeholders in the healthcare sector to support efforts aimed at eliminating substandard and falsified medical products to ensure the availability of safe and effective medicines for Nigerians.
The Greenbook app can be downloaded from the Apple Store or Google Play Store or accessed via greenbook.nafdac.gov.ng.