I came back to Nigeria to remove the shame, not to enrich myself

The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Moji Adeyeye, has said she returned to Nigeria to serve the country and restore the reputation of the agency, rather than enrich herself.

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Mrs Adeyeye, a pharmacist and professor, stated this on Monday while responding to a journalist’s question about when she would resign from office.

The question initially drew laughter from the NAFDAC chief, but she subsequently used her response to recount her nine-year tenure, including the challenges she inherited and what she described as the transformation recorded by the agency under her leadership.

In a video of the encounter that has gone viral on social media, Mrs Adeyeye became visibly emotional as she spoke about the financial and operational challenges she encountered when she assumed office.

“When I got to NAFDAC, NAFDAC had maturity level one out of four. We had N3.2 billion in debt that I inherited,” she said.

According to her, about N1.6 billion of the debt was owed in taxes, while another N700 million was owed to staff who travelled for Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) inspections.

She said the agency also owed contractors and that between 70 and 80 per cent of its equipment was not functioning when she assumed office.

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“Seventy to 80 per cent of our equipment was not working. In the laboratory, companies were sending vehicles for us to come and inspect them,” she said.

Mrs Adeyeye said she prioritised settling the agency’s debts and rebuilding its regulatory capacity.

“We paid N3.1 billion by November 2018,” she said.

From maturity level one to three

The NAFDAC chief said the agency’s regulatory standing improved significantly during her tenure.

She said NAFDAC attained maturity level three in March 2022, making it the third agency in Africa to reach that level.

She added that the agency subsequently became an affiliate member of the International Medical Device Regulators Forum and, in 2025, became a member of the International Council for Harmonisation.

“Countries now respect us. Regulatory agencies respect us,” she said.

Mrs Adeyeye also recalled the negative perception of NAFDAC when she assumed office, saying some people referred to the agency as a “good-for-nothing agency.”

She said her administration worked to change that perception by strengthening the agency’s regulatory systems and improving its international standing.

Her tenure

The question about Mrs Adeyeye’s resignation comes amid growing public interest in when her tenure as NAFDAC DG will end.

Section 9(3) of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control Act provides that the Director-General shall hold office for a term of five years and is eligible for reappointment for another five-year term.

Mrs Adeyeye was initially appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari on 3 November 2017 for a five-year term.

In December 2022, Mr Buhari reappointed her for another five-year term.

Her current tenure is therefore expected to expire in 2027, subject to the terms of her appointment.

The law allows a Director-General to serve a maximum of two five-year terms.

‘I came here to serve’

Mrs Adeyeye said her decision to return to Nigeria was driven by a desire to contribute to the country after spending decades abroad.

“I lived in the U.S. for 37 years. I was a professor for 30 years in an all-white school. I retired happily,” she said.

“I came here to serve, but Nigerians have an aversion to service. Some Nigerians have an aversion to service. It is always, ‘What can I get from the country?’”

She criticised the culture of personal gain, saying it had contributed to Nigeria’s challenges.

“We have rendered Nigeria useless because of ‘What can I get?’ We have rendered Nigeria useless because of ‘What is in it for my pockets?’” she said.

Mrs Adeyeye also challenged anyone who had accused her of demanding money from contractors during her tenure to come forward.

“Any contractor that I have demanded money from should come here and tell me,” she said.

“I came here for service. I retired happily. I was ashamed of my country. I was ashamed of my country. I came to remove some of the shame, and the world is seeing it.”

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She said NAFDAC’s achievements had changed the way the agency is perceived internationally.

“The world is seeing it,” she said.

Responding to the question about when she would resign, Mrs Adeyeye said her record in office should provide the answer.

“So, that question—‘When are you going to resign?’—I hope you got the answer,” she said.

Background

Established in 1993, NAFDAC is a federal agency under Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health responsible for regulating and controlling the manufacture, importation, exportation, advertisement, distribution, sale and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, chemicals and packaged water.

Before her appointment, Mrs Adeyeye was the founding Chair of Biopharmaceutical Sciences and a Professor of Pharmaceutics, Manufacturing Science and Drug Product Evaluation at Roosevelt University in Illinois, United States.

She also spent 21 years as a Professor of Pharmaceutics and Manufacturing at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

She is a Senior Fulbright Scholar and Specialist, and a Fellow of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. She is also a Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science and the Nigerian Academy of Pharmacy.