The Senate has asked the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and other regulatory agencies not to grant any further extension to the moratorium scheduled to lapse in December 2025 and to immediately ensure strict enforcement of the ban and prohibition of packaging high-strength alcohol in sachet formats in all parts of the country from December 2025 without delay.
Senate has mandated the Federal Ministry of Health to ensure that there are no impediments to the ability of NAFDAC to enforce the prohibition of the packaging of alcoholic products in sachet formats in any part of Nigeria.
The Upper Chamber has called on the Federal Ministry of Health to expedite the conclusion and public release of the National Alcohol Policy that contains a clear and unequivocal prohibition of the packaging of high-strength alcoholic products in sachet formats and to support NAFDAC in providing a holistic direction for enforcement and public sensitization.
The Senate has also directed the National Orientation Agency (NOA) to intensify nationwide sensitization campaigns on the dangers of high-alcohol-content beverages among youths and school-aged children and to discourage the packaging and consumption of these products in sachet formats.
Resolutions of the Senate yesterday were sequel to a motion titled, " the need to halt further extension of the Phase out of Alcoholic Beverages Packaged in Sachet Formats.
The motion was sponsored by Senator Ekpeyong Asuquo, APC, Cross River South.
In his presentation, Senator Asuquo said, "the Senate:
Notes that in line with global regulatory standards and international best practices, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), following collaborative consultations with industry and regulatory stakeholders, announced a phased ban on the importation, manufacture, and distribution of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachet formats;
"Further notes that in 2018, stakeholders, including the Federal Ministry of Health, the FCCPC, NAFDAC, and industry bodies, namely the Association of Food, Beverage & Tobacco Employers, as well as the Distillers & Blenders Association of Nigeria) voluntarily signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) committing to the gradual phase-out of the production and sale of these high-strength alcoholic beverages in these packaging formats due to growing public health concerns over their affordability, portability, easy accessibility, and increasing consumption and abuse among children, adolescents, commercial vehicle drivers, and other vulnerable groups;
"Aware that the Federal Government, upon appeal from industry players, granted an additional one-year moratorium in 2024 to enable manufacturers to exhaust existing stock, adjust production lines, and explore compliant packaging alternatives until December 2025, notwithstanding the clear provisions of the MoU and the subsequent directive issued by NAFDAC prohibiting the practice;
"Concerned that as the deadline of December 2025 approaches, some manufacturers continue to lobby for another extension, thereby undermining regulatory authority, jeopardizing public health, and potentially encouraging prolonged proliferation and circulation of these products in harmful sachet packaging formats in our communities;
"Further concerned that certain manufacturers who complied in good faith now suffer competitive disadvantages against those who continue to produce and distribute non-compliant formats, creating a distorted market environment and disincentivizing responsible industry behaviour;
"Recognises that excessive youth exposure to cheap, high-alcohol-content products packaged in sachets contributes to addiction, impaired cognitive development, increased school dropout rates, road accidents, domestic violence, and other social vices;
"Worried that pushing this moratorium further will impede the full enforcement of the extant powers and responsibilities of NAFDAC as the statutorily empowered regulator in Section 5 and Section 31 of its enabling statute, and also undermine ideals of a fitting National Alcohol Policy thereby weakening Nigeria’s standing as a responsible member of the global community committed to the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations on alcohol harm reduction;
"Mindful of the provisions of Section 17(3)(f) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which mandates that “children, young persons and the aged are protected against exploitation, and moral and material neglect,” thereby obligating the government to proactively curb harmful products easily accessed by minors;
"Disturbed that continued delays in the enforcement of the prohibition will further saturate the market with high-strength alcoholic products packaged in sachet formats already flagged as harmful, undermining years of regulatory efforts, public education, and progressive voluntary compliance."
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