The Nigerian Senate has directed the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and other regulatory bodies to fully enforce the ban on high-strength alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets by December 2025, warning that no further extension will be granted beyond the current moratorium.
Grassroots Parrot reports that the resolution followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpeyong (Cross River South), who cautioned against renewed lobbying by some manufacturers seeking another deadline extension.
Leading the debate, Senator Ekpeyong reminded his colleagues that NAFDAC’s phased ban on sachet alcohol was introduced after extensive consultations and in alignment with global public health standards.
He explained that in 2018, major stakeholders — including the Federal Ministry of Health, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), and industry associations — signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to gradually phase out the production and sale of high-alcohol content drinks in sachets.
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The agreement, he said, was prompted by growing health and social concerns, as the affordability and portability of sachet alcohol had made it easily accessible to children, teenagers, commercial drivers, and other vulnerable groups, leading to addiction, risky behaviour, and severe health complications.
Ekpeyong recalled that despite the initial deadline expiring, the Federal Government granted a one-year grace period in 2024 to allow manufacturers to exhaust existing stocks and switch to safer packaging formats — pushing the new deadline to December 2025.
He, however, lamented that some producers are once again lobbying for another extension, describing the move as a direct threat to public health and an attempt to undermine regulatory authority.
“The continued circulation of high-strength alcoholic beverages in sachets is worsening youth addiction, fuelling road accidents, school dropouts, domestic violence and other social ills. Nigeria cannot keep normalising the abuse of cheap alcohol simply because it is conveniently packaged,” Ekpeyong warned.
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Following deliberations, the Senate directed the Federal Ministry of Health to eliminate all administrative barriers hindering NAFDAC’s full enforcement of the ban. Lawmakers also cautioned that the agency must not be constrained by bureaucratic delays or political interference.
In addition, the Senate urged the Ministry of Health to fast-track the release of the National Alcohol Policy, which is expected to formally outlaw sachet packaging of high-strength alcoholic drinks and establish a nationwide public sensitisation framework on the dangers of sachet alcohol consumption.
The upper chamber emphasised that public health and safety must take precedence over commercial interests, asserting that the December 2025 deadline remains final and non-negotiable.