NAFDAC has uncovered Chinese-linked syndicates that are no longer just importing counterfeit goods into Nigeria. The agency says some of these operators have set up production and distribution networks inside the country, making fake products closer to the consumers they target.
Martins Iluyomade, NAFDAC's Director of Investigation and Enforcement, said intelligence gathered by the agency shows a shift in how counterfeit products enter the Nigerian market. According to him, the operators identify products that are selling quickly in Nigeria, obtain samples, and have them replicated before bringing the counterfeit versions into the local market.
Some of the networks run their own logistics companies through which the products are distributed, NAFDAC alleged. The agency has begun shutting down illegal logistics facilities connected to these networks, Iluyomade said.
The disclosure comes as NAFDAC intensifies its wider crackdown on fake and unregistered products. The agency says counterfeiters identify popular products and replicate them for the local market, a method that makes the fakes harder for ordinary consumers to distinguish from genuine items.
NAFDAC Director-General Professor Mojisola Adeyeye said the agency had confiscated and destroyed regulated products valued at more than ₦1.5 trillion during coordinated enforcement operations in Lagos and the South-East. The agency also recorded 64 convictions involving counterfeiters between June 2025 and June 2026, a figure NAFDAC described as the highest number of convictions it has recorded in one year.
One of those cases resulted in a five-year prison sentence for an operator of an illegal beverage laboratory in December.
NAFDAC has recently dealt with complaints and enforcement cases involving products such as fake toothpaste, cosmetics, contaminated bottled water, and unwholesome dairy products. The agency has also carried out arrests and seizures in several states over alleged counterfeit oral-care products. Some suspects arrested in Kano, Sokoto, Delta, and Anambra are facing prosecution before federal courts, NAFDAC said.
The development is particularly concerning because counterfeit products can be difficult for ordinary consumers to distinguish from genuine ones. A product's packaging, price, or source may appear suspicious, and NAFDAC has warned consumers to take extra caution when buying regulated products.
The agency says the enforcement campaign will continue as it works to identify the people and networks behind the manufacture, movement, and sale of counterfeit and substandard products.
NAFDAC's latest findings suggest the counterfeit goods trade in Nigeria has moved beyond reliance on imported fakes. The establishment of local production lines by these Chinese-linked operators means the problem is now being manufactured inside the country, closer to the markets where the products are sold.
The agency's enforcement operations have targeted both the production and distribution sides of the networks. Shutting down illegal logistics facilities cuts off one of the main channels through which counterfeit products reach retailers and consumers.
The ₦1.5 trillion worth of destroyed regulated products represents a significant haul for the agency, which has been conducting coordinated operations across multiple regions. The 64 convictions secured in one year mark the agency's most active period of legal enforcement against counterfeiters.
NAFDAC's warning to consumers to be cautious when buying regulated products points to the practical challenge the agency faces. Even with increased enforcement and convictions, the agency relies on consumers to report suspicious products and to check the authenticity of what they buy.
The five-year prison sentence handed down in December for the operator of an illegal beverage laboratory shows the courts are willing to impose serious penalties in these cases. The agency's continued enforcement campaign aims to identify more of the people and networks behind the manufacture, movement, and sale of counterfeit and substandard products.
The investigation into Chinese-linked syndicates is ongoing, with the agency saying it will keep working to identify those responsible. NAFDAC has not said how many of these local production networks it has found or dismantled so far, but the intelligence it has gathered points to a coordinated operation across multiple states.
According to Pulse.ng.
