The Nigeria Customs Service, Port Harcourt Area I Command, has transferred a consignment of expired pharmaceutical products worth over ₦59 million to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control.

The handover took place on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at the command’s headquarters in Port Harcourt. Representatives of NAFDAC, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, the Department of State Services, freight forwarders, and other stakeholders witnessed the exercise.

According to a statement from the command, the expired medicines were intercepted during a joint cargo examination involving Customs officers, NAFDAC, and other relevant agencies.

Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Salamatu Atuluku, said the seizure reflected the command’s resolve to block harmful and prohibited drugs from entering Nigerian markets.

“The seizure was a clear demonstration of the Command’s commitment to preventing harmful and prohibited pharmaceutical products from finding their way into Nigerian markets,” Atuluku said.

She added that the consignment contained several cartons of expired pharmaceutical products with a combined Cost, Insurance and Freight value of over ₦59 million.

Atuluku warned that allowing such products into circulation could have caused serious health risks for millions of Nigerians. She also commended the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, for backing intelligence-driven operations and inter-agency collaboration.

Receiving the items on behalf of NAFDAC, Deputy Director of the Port Inspection Directorate, Pharm. Adepoju Raufu, lauded Customs for stopping the expired drugs from entering the supply chain.

Raufu assured that NAFDAC would immediately begin regulatory processes for the safe disposal of the medicines in line with existing laws and guidelines.