The Senate has stepped up efforts to combat counterfeit medicines by passing for second reading a bill that proposes tougher penalties, stronger enforcement powers and tighter regulation of the pharmaceutical supply chain.
The Counterfeit Medical Products, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods (Prohibition and Control) Bill, 2026 (SB.951), sponsored by Senator Sadiq Suleiman (APC, Kwara North), scaled second reading on Wednesday, July 8, 2026.
The bill seeks to replace the existing anti-counterfeit law with a modern legal framework to tackle evolving threats, including illicit online drug sales and cross-border trafficking.
A key provision bans the sale or hawking of medicines in open markets, motor parks, roadside stalls, buses, ferries, unlicensed outlets and unauthorized online platforms.
It also proposes up to 15 years’ imprisonment for serious counterfeit drug offences, alongside hefty fines and mandatory compensation where fake medicines cause death or grievous bodily harm.
The legislation criminalizes the entire counterfeit supply chain, covering the manufacture, importation, exportation, transportation, storage, distribution, sale and possession of fake medicines, as well as counterfeit labels, packaging materials and production equipment.
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It further holds company directors and principal officers personally liable for corporate offences, empowers courts to seal offending premises and bars convicted persons from engaging in pharmaceutical-related businesses.
To strengthen enforcement, the bill establishes national and state task forces comprising NAFDAC, the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria and other relevant agencies.
It also provides for the seizure and forfeiture of assets linked to counterfeit drug syndicates, creates an Asset Recovery Fund, grants the Federal High Court exclusive jurisdiction over offences, recognises electronic evidence and empowers NAFDAC legal officers to prosecute cases.
Leading the debate, Suleiman said the current law is no longer adequate to tackle technology-driven and transnational counterfeit drug operations. He said the bill aims to curb preventable deaths, protect legitimate pharmaceutical businesses, strengthen public confidence in healthcare and align Nigeria’s anti-counterfeit regime with global standards.
Supporting the measure, Senator Samson Ekong called for tougher sanctions to deter offenders, while Senator Adams Oshiomhole described counterfeit medicines as a grave threat to public health.
Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin also backed the proposal but urged the committee to ensure it strengthens, rather than duplicates, NAFDAC’s statutory powers.
The Senate subsequently referred the bill to the Committee on Health (Secondary and Tertiary), directing it to report back within four weeks.