Health Ministry recalls 2.4m codeine bottles

The Nigerian government, through the Ministry of Health, has recalled 2.4 million bottles of codeine containing cough syrup.

The ministry called for the recall after an audit carried out by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

Spokesperson for the ministry Boade Akinola said the minister had recently received the final report of the 22-man Stakeholders Committee set up by the Ministry to address the worrisome menace of codeine abuse in Nigeria.

The federal government had, in May, banned the production and importation of codeine as active pharmaceutical ingredient for cough syrup preparations to check substance abuse among Nigerians.

The minister directed NAFDAC to ban the issuance of permits for the importation of codeine as active pharmaceutical ingredient for cough preparations.

He also directed the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria, (PCN) and NAFDAC to supervise the recall for labelling and audit trailing of all codeine containing cough syrups nationwide.