Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
The National Food and Drug Administration (NAFADC) and Ondo State University of Health Sciences (UniMed) yesterday signed an agreement to conduct research on food safety, herbal medicine and drug discovery.
The agreement formalizes the cooperation between the two institutions and obliges them to cooperate closely in the areas of training, capacity building, institutional development, applied research and community projects.
NAFDAC CEO Professor Mojisola Adeye hinted on Tuesday the signing ceremony of the official memorandum of understanding between the agency and UniMed in Lagos.
Adeye said the two institutions would cooperate in research areas such as conducting and promoting mycotoxin research, technology transfer in quality control and assurance, risk assessment and management in food systems.
The head of NAFDAC, in a statement from the agency's resident media advisor Sayo Akintola, added that the association will also seek grants to fund collaborative research and development (R&D) in mycotoxin research, food safety, and other interdisciplinary research. .
Adeye further explained that "we are trying to strengthen cooperation and cooperation with significant efforts, especially now that a healthy lifestyle and food security are important things for the citizens of this country".
He expressed concern that people were dying prematurely from eating mushrooms.
“Eat food with phallotoxin, low in any toxin or poison. Many people are hypersensitive to mold in food," he said.
He noted with dismay that Nigerians were quick to link these deaths to village witches. "
No, it could be something from our food. It could be counterfeit and low-quality medicine,” he warned.
The head of NAFDAC explained that he lost his brother on September 1, 2021 due to taking the unhealthy drug, adding that he complained that he had taken an antimalarial drug about a year ago, which left him disabled. just do it. can walk without a stroke. She said she also said she had an itch for about six weeks.
"He didn't have a stroke. He said it was malaria medicine. I mentioned the name of the medicine."
He complains that people like to buy medicine from drug dealers, pharmacies or street vendors without a prescription, adding that "the lesson from this is that brainpower drives regulatory systems, because if one doesn't understand what food is, even starting from the micronutrients in food and understanding the role of pollutants, be they phallotoxins, macrotoxins, whatever, is almost like slowly digging your own grave.
“The rest is history, as he died a painful death at UCH,” he said sadly. He rhetorically asked: “How many people are left like this?
“That is why I take seriously what we are doing to protect the health of our people. It's about food safety. This is a drug that does what it does: quality, safety and efficacy."
He said, a country that prioritizes science is a country that has a future.