By Esther Onyegbula

The Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria, ACPN, has condemned the Federal Government’s decision to reverse the ban on the production and retail distribution of alcoholic beverages in sachets and containers below 200 millilitres, warning that the move poses grave risks to public health and child protection.

National Chairman of ACPN, Pharm. Ambrose Ezeh, in a statement personally signed by him, described the policy U-turn as a troubling setback for evidence-based regulation and a dangerous compromise of child-protection objectives.

The initial directive was issued by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission. In December 2018, the agencies entered into a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with industry operators to phase out sachet and small-volume alcohol packaging by January 31, 2024.

According to Ezeh, the timeline was later extended to December 2025 to enable manufacturers exhaust existing stock, restructure supply chains and reconfigure production facilities in line with public health standards, describing the process as consultative and industry-accommodating.
He stressed that the public health justification for the ban was firmly rooted in harm-reduction principles, noting that alcohol misuse accounts for about 29 per cent of preventable deaths in Nigeria and nearly half of all road traffic accidents.

Citing data, Ezeh said over 60,000 deaths were linked to alcohol-related causes in 2016 alone, including liver disease, alcohol-induced cancers and fatal crashes, underscoring what he termed a national public health emergency requiring decisive regulatory intervention.

He identified the proliferation of low-cost, small-volume alcoholic drinks as a major driver of alcohol-related harm, particularly among minors and vulnerable groups. Sachet alcohol, he argued, lowers barriers to access, affordability and concealment, thereby facilitating underage consumption and frequent use.
“Studies and field data indicate that a significant proportion of minors independently procure alcohol, with a clear preference for sachets and sub-200ml bottles because they are cheap, portable and easily hidden,” he stated.

The ACPN chairman expressed concern that rather than uphold a regulation anchored on harm reduction and child protection, some industry actors allegedly intensified lobbying efforts, reframing the debate around affordability and moderated consumption.

While such arguments may appear economically rational, he warned that they risk subordinating public health and child welfare to commercial interests, adding that vulnerable youths should not be viewed as emerging market segments.
“The prohibition of sachet alcohol should not be treated as a symbolic regulatory exercise,” Ezeh said. “It represents a substantive policy statement that Nigeria will not trade the health and future of its children for short-term fiscal or commercial gains.”

He maintained that cost, benefit analyses consistently show that the long-term social and economic burdens of alcohol misuse, including healthcare costs, productivity losses, criminal justice expenditure and intergenerational harm, outweigh any temporary gains to industry.

Ezeh further cautioned that reliance solely on warning labels and age restrictions, without strong supply-side controls, could render enforcement ineffective.

He also linked the reversal to broader regulatory inconsistencies, including what he described as the prolonged inability to decisively eliminate open drug markets responsible for the circulation of counterfeit and substandard medicines.

“Nigeria now stands at a critical policy crossroads,” he said. “When the choice lies between safeguarding public health and preserving profit margins, the ethical calculus should be unequivocal.”
He urged government to prioritise child protection, strengthen regulatory governance and uphold evidence-based public policy in the interest of national development.