The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has raised concerns over the growing involvement of Chinese counterfeiters based in Nigeria in the production and distribution of fake and harmful products.
The Punch reported that the NAFDAC Director of Investigation and Enforcement, Martins Iluyomade, disclosed this in Lagos on Monday while speaking with The PUNCH, saying investigations had uncovered a shift in the operations of counterfeiters who previously relied on overseas production.
According to him, some Chinese nationals involved in counterfeiting have now established production facilities and distribution networks within Nigeria, making it easier to manufacture and circulate fake products locally.
“Before, to fake a product, you needed to go to China to bring it. Now, you don’t need to go. They are here (in Nigeria) with us. They are the ones who will identify the product that will be moving, send it to their country (China), and then come here and distribute it to our people (Nigerians) without having to travel.
Iluyomade described the development as a “new trend making it (fake goods situation) look this serious,” adding that some of the Chinese counterfeiters operate logistics firms used to facilitate the movement of fake products.
He said, “the Chinese people (counterfeiters) own the logistics companies which they used to bring these (fake goods) things.” NAFDAC, he added, had been shutting down some of the companies identified in connection with the illicit trade.
The agency’s disclosure comes amid increasing public concern over the spread of counterfeit and substandard products in Nigeria.
Manufacturers, medical professionals and economists have warned that the growing circulation of fake products is threatening legitimate businesses, putting consumers’ lives at risk and negatively affecting the economy.
The scale of the problem has also been reflected in NAFDAC’s enforcement operations. Director-General of the agency, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said regulated products worth more than N1.5tn were destroyed during a coordinated operation across Lagos and the South-East between February and March 2025.
She added that the agency had, since 2023, destroyed or seized fake and substandard products valued at more than N1.54tn nationwide.
Public concern over counterfeit products intensified over the weekend, with Nigerians and social media personalities, including Scott Iguma and Aproko Doctor, drawing attention to alleged fake consumer products.
Among the items generating concern were toothpaste, creams, bottled water and yoghurt drinks.
NAFDAC confirmed that it had received complaints through its official channels concerning counterfeit toothpaste, particularly products bearing the Oral-B and Colgate brands.
Iluyomade said the agency had already commenced investigations and enforcement actions over the matter.
“We have an intelligence report on (fake toothpastes) and have been working on it: we’ve made a lot of arrests and seizures, both in Kano and Sokoto states, Delta State and Onitsha (in Anambra State).”
He further disclosed that two individuals were currently facing prosecution for allegedly importing counterfeit toothpaste brands.
Adeyeye said NAFDAC’s enforcement efforts had significantly reduced the circulation of counterfeit, falsified, substandard and unregistered products, citing the agency’s recent operation at the Upper Iweka drug market in Onitsha.
The agency also highlighted its progress in securing convictions against offenders involved in the manufacture and distribution of fake products.
Iluyomade said that between June 2025 and June 2026, NAFDAC secured 64 convictions, describing the figure as the highest recorded by the agency in its history.
“June 2025 and June 2026, NAFDAC hit a record of 64 convictions. The highest in its history.”
He cited the conviction of a laboratory involved in the production of counterfeit drinks as an example of the agency’s recent successes.
“We go through the process. In December, a judge handed five years of imprisonment to one lab that counterfeited drinks, convicting them on all eight grounds.”
