Fake Products Flood Markets As Nigerians Demand Tougher Action

Nigerians have raised fresh concerns over the growing circulation of counterfeit and substandard products in markets across the country, with food, medicines, cosmetics and other everyday items increasingly coming under suspicion.

The development has placed the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria under renewed scrutiny, as Nigerians question how fake products continue to reach markets despite existing regulatory measures. 

The concerns have been amplified on social media, where consumers have drawn attention to suspected fake toothpaste, yoghurt, paracetamol, palm oil and other products.

Some Nigerians have called on NAFDAC and SON to intensify surveillance at markets, warehouses, ports and other points where counterfeit products could enter the supply chain.

Recent operations by NAFDAC have also revealed the scale of the problem. In February 2026, the agency reported the seizure of more than 10 million doses of fake malaria medicines and other pharmaceutical products at the Lagos Trade Fair Market.

NAFDAC also uncovered warehouses hidden inside an uncompleted building in Apapa, Lagos, containing banned, fake and unregistered medicines valued at more than ₦3bn. 

A former Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association, Lagos State, Dr Saheed Babajide, blamed weak enforcement for the continued spread of counterfeit medicines.

Babajide warned that taking fake or substandard medicines could lead to serious health complications, including kidney and heart problems, while ineffective medicines could prolong illnesses and increase the cost of treatment.

He called for stronger laws and tougher punishment for people involved in the manufacture and distribution of fake drugs, arguing that the issue should be treated as an urgent public health concern.

A Lagos-based commentator, Segun Odunewu, also called for a major overhaul of NAFDAC, alleging that the agency had become less effective in protecting Nigerians from counterfeit products.

However, public affairs analyst Adebayo Abubakar said scrapping NAFDAC or SON would not solve the problem. He instead called for stronger institutions, better accountability and more effective enforcement of the laws establishing the agencies.

Another analyst, Musa Aliyu, called for a review of Nigeria’s policy on contaminated and unwholesome pharmaceutical products, noting that the problem had expanded beyond medicines and required stronger cooperation between government agencies and communities.

A Lagos-based lawyer, Muhammed Adam, went further by calling for the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on fake and substandard products, describing the situation as organised economic and public health sabotage.

With counterfeit medicines, adulterated food, fake electrical products, substandard building materials and imitation consumer goods reportedly appearing in different markets, Nigerians are now demanding stronger surveillance, tougher sanctions and sustained enforcement to protect consumers.

About The Author