By Folasade Akpan
The National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) and the Federal University Teaching Hospital, Lafia (FUTHL) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration in vaccine and drug research, development, and clinical trials.
The agreement, signed in Abuja in the presence of Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, seeks to address longstanding gaps in local production of vaccines, medicines, and diagnostics.
FUTHL Chief Medical Director, Dr Ikrama Hassan, said the partnership was timely, noting Africa still produces “less than 10 per cent of the vaccines and drugs that we need on the continent.”
He added that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the continent’s vulnerabilities and highlighted the urgent need to build resilient research and manufacturing systems for vaccines and pharmaceuticals.
“We want to leverage the advantage that NIPRD has already developed so that in no distant time, we should make Nigeria one of the hubs, if not the most important hub, for research on vaccines and drugs,” Hassan said.
Hassan disclosed that at least 200 hospital staff would participate in the research collaboration, stressing that developing active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) locally would allow Nigeria to own intellectual property for swift responses during future pandemics.
“If we have another pandemic and countries close their borders, we should be able to develop our own vaccines and drugs. Today is a very historic day,” he added.
NIPRD Director-General, Dr Obi Adigwe, said the MoU aligns with the institute’s strategy of forging high-impact partnerships that accelerate national pharmaceutical innovation and capacity building.
Adigwe revealed that implementation of the MoU would begin immediately, with quarterly progress updates provided to the minister, and that NIPRD had secured an 18 million pounds agreement with the European Union, Africa’s largest R&D initiative.
He added that under the MoU, FUTHL would automatically benefit from upcoming training programmes, including slots for 50 to 100 Nigerian scientists at Stanford University in February 2026.
“The selection process will be published and thousands will compete, but with this MoU, this organisation automatically has secured slots,” Adigwe said.
He also highlighted that the collaboration would strengthen clinical trials capacity, referencing NIPRD’s leadership in Nigeria’s first fractional dosing COVID-19 vaccine trial, which would now extend to FUTHL.
Adigwe outlined plans to advance phytomedicine research, noting Nasarawa State’s rich plant resources with ethnomedicinal value and potential to generate income for women and youth.
He emphasised that combining his private-sector experience with Hassan’s leadership in transitioning FUTHL from state to federal control would align priorities and create commercialisation pathways for research outputs.
“As interventions come from the partnership, there is a pipeline for them to be commercialised to earn revenue not only for Nigeria, but for the scientists and researchers involved,” Adigwe said.
The partnership is expected to strengthen Nigeria’s role in Africa’s pharmaceutical innovation ecosystem while advancing ongoing national efforts to localise vaccine and drug manufacturing. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Abiemwense Moru
