Importation Of Medicines Will Stop In West Africa By 2030 – Dr. Olamide Okulaja

Importation of Medicines Will Stop In West Africa By 2036 Dr. Olamide Okulaja
By Victor Anya

Dr. Olamide Okulaja

In consideration of the efforts and

measures being taken by the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector across the West African sub- region, Dr. Olamide Okulaja has declared that the region has the capacity to produce the medicines it will consume and end importation by 2036.

He made this declaration during the Pharma West Africa Conference held on 14-16, April, 2026 at the Landmark Exhibition Centre, Lagos.

Presenting his paper as the Keynote Speaker, on the theme: Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Strengthening for Self-Sufficiency in West Africa, he noted that despite the fact that the region has the scientists, manufacturers and raw materials, 70% of the medicines consumed in West Africa are still being imported.

Okulaja added that this precarious situation remained so because there was no proper coordination among the patients, pharmacists and the manufacturers of medicines in West Africa,

He lamented a situation where 60% of patients meet private pharmacists without data being generated for public hospital system. He stated that 30-60% of Africas pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity sit idle because of lack of relevant data and visible demand structure.

The ingredients for self-sufficiency in West African pharmaceutical sector exists. The gap is not in resources but in three layers that havent been connected.
The service layer private pharmacists and patient and proprietary medicine vendors (PPMVs) are the real first contact for 60% of patients who generate zero data for public health system.

The capital layer ensures that affordable finance gets to the pharmacist that will in turn encourage the pharmacist to stock his store with genuine medicines.
The production layer makes the local manufacturer to produce between 30 -60% capacity due to lack of reliable demand signals from the two layers mentioned above, Okulaja said.

He warned that external funding would end soon and that co-funding was increasing across countries as countries are being asked to own their systems.

“A system funded externally cannot produce internally. Sovereignty in health supply requires sovereignty in health financing,” he said.

Speaking further, Okulaja said that manufacturers need to know the volumes of medicines needed and can be paid for, before producing to avoid wastefulness.

He emphasized the importance of contributory insurance that enables patients to pay for treatments with ease warning that the era where patients pay out of pocket for treatments was no longer feasible.

Okulaja gave example of Lagos State where patient and proprietary medicine vendors (PPMVs) were introduced into the Lagos State Health Management Authority (LASHMA) Ilera Eko system, making it accountable and reimbursable.
He stated that the Bank of Industry and Sterling Bank that will support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMES) pharmacies will soon be launched, and that it will unlock quality stock and digital system.

In addition to the above, Okulaja stressed that 70% of malaria treatments occur in private pharmacies, 60% of first patient contacts in Nigeria occur outside public facilities. This is the real system but it is invisible to every procurement, planning, and regulatory authority in the region.

He explained that self-sufficient system is not built on one form of financing but built on three financing systems: insurance, affordable credit for pharmacists and long term capital for manufacturers. He said donor financing is being replaced by insurance and loan financing.

He stressed the need for an integrated model which will enable pharmacists to grow their revenue by 24% annually when enrolled digitally. It enables governments to gather data real-time and manufacturers to increase production due to verified demand network.

Self-sufficiency will not be achieved through manufacturing incentives alone. It will be achieved when financing, service delivery, and production are integrated into the system. Africa does not have supply problem it has purchasing architecture problem.

If we leave this conference the way we came without taken the necessary action, we will still discuss the same problem in the 2027 conference – private pharmacies will remain invisible to public system, manufacturers will continue to produce at low capacity, patients will continue to pay out of pocket for unverified medicines.

West Africa will continue to import 70% of its medicines. The data that can change this will continue to exist but unread, he said.

He further explained that if the organizers of the conference should adopt four decisions, the private pharmacy network will enter the

national insurance platform, the Free Trade Zone pharmaceutical manufacturer will receive strategic health infrastructure status, drug quality standards will be harmonized to unlock the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) pharmaceutical trade, data will become the foundation of procurement decisions.

He advised the organizers of the conference to take action rather than holding the conference as a yearly ritual which will not change the 70% importation of medicines consumed in West Africa.