By Olaitan Ganiu
The Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN) has vowed to use its forthcoming 28th Mandatory Continuous Professional Development (MCPD) workshop to seek ways of ascertaining the quality of medical and food-related items in the country.
To this end, IPAN has called on members and stakeholders to avail themselves of the workshop, scheduled to hold from November 19 to 20, to come up with ideas and strategies on how to curb the influx of substandard medical and allied products into the country.
The two-day workshop, which will take place at Ostra Hall and Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, will focus on “Contemporary analytical laboratory practice: Overcoming sectoral challenges”.
The theme of the conference is to foster further development of competence and skills among professional analysts in food, agro-allied, water, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and other laboratories. The objective is to x-ray the current state of affairs and bring up-to-date the standards in the regulatory environment in analytical laboratory practice in Nigeria with reference to international best practices.
In view of the pivotal roles of analytical laboratory practice in the health and socio-economic development of the country, IPAN, according to its governing council, will be using the workshop to explore the various contemporary opportunities inherent in different sectoral practices of the profession in order to develop and harness them to optimal professional advantages with the attendant benefits. At a press conference in Lagos, Aliyu Angara, the IPAN Registrar, said the focus on the various sectors of the economy is informed by their strategic disposition to national development.
He added that it is a common knowledge that the federal government is making concerted efforts to attain self-sufficiency in the food and agricultural sector.
Read Also: SMEDAN kicks off talent hunt with 185 participants
“The recent closure of all the nation’s borders is a pointer to this. Similarly, the effort is being made to improve generated revenue from solid minerals in order to reduce the total dependence on oil and gas. Also, the health challenges posed by environmental degradation and adulterated or unwholesome drugs cannot be overemphasised,” Angara said.
He emphasised that the nation is yet to overcome the unfortunate incidents of oil pipeline vandalism across the nation’s pipeline network especially at the Niger Delta area, which precipitate environmental degradation from oil spillage as well as flagrant gas flaring that has been on for decades. Angara further said it is worrisome citizen that the nation’s pharmaceutical sector is dominated by foreign nationals, besides issues such as the prevalence of substandard, unwholesome and falsified medical products.
Similarly, Dr. Femi Oyediran, vice chairman of IPAN, said that the sectorial challenges facing analysts need to be identified and addressed properly in order to assist the nation’s quest towards economic self-sufficiency.
“Today, Nigeria has placed an embargo on some imported products and many Nigerians are in trouble. But the truth is we need to develop and patronise our local products. Hence, in sustaining the local items, it is important that the public analysts need to ascertain product quality, safety, and efficacy,” he said.
Oyediran, however, added that it is imperative for stakeholders in the sectors to attend the workshop as an array of experts have been arranged to identify the various challenges confronting professionals both in the public and private sectors to proffer long-lasting solutions.
Leave a Reply