Chinese counterfeiters who currently reside in Nigeria have been connected by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control to the spread of counterfeit goods, exacerbating the manufacture, distribution, and sale of tainted, dangerous, and unhealthy items.
In an interview in Lagos on Monday, Martins Iluyomade, Director of Investigation and Enforcement at NAFDAC, stated that recent investigations have revealed that Chinese counterfeiters who had previously operated outside have established facilities and logistics networks within the nation.
“In the past, you had to travel to China to bring a fake product,” he stated. You don’t have to leave now. They are with us here in Nigeria. They are the ones who would choose the product to be transported, ship it to China, and then come here to deliver it to Nigerians without requiring them to travel.
NAFDAC found that “Chinese people (counterfeiters) own the logistics companies which they used to bring these (fake goods) things,” Iluyomade said, characterizing it as a “new trend making it (fake goods situation) look this serious.” According to NAFDAC, the logistics firms have been shut down.
The agency’s disclosures coincide with mounting criticism. Together, manufacturers, medical professionals, and economists have expressed concern over the rise in fake and inferior goods in Nigeria, claiming that the trend is harming consumers, destroying real enterprises, and slowing down the country’s economy.
The value lost during NAFDAC’s destruction exercises highlights the economic cost of counterfeit goods.
As part of a broader campaign that has seen it destroy or seize more than N1.54 trillion worth of counterfeit and inferior goods nationwide since 2023, NAFDAC Director-General Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye claims that the agency destroyed regulated products worth over N1.5 trillion in a single coordinated operation across Lagos and the Southeast between February and March 2025.
Over the weekend, online conversation over the proliferation of counterfeit goods intensified. Influencers from Nigeria, such as Scott Iguma and Aproko Doctor, expressed concern over the proliferation of these fake goods. Posts on social media concerning polluted bottled water, adulterated yogurt drinks, phony toothpastes, and creams have gone viral.
NAFDAC said that it received complaints concerning fake toothpaste, including Oral B and Colgate, through its proper channels.
“We have an intelligence report on (fake toothpastes) and have been working on it: we’ve made a lot of arrests and seizures, both in Kano and Sokoto states, Delta State, and Onitsha (in Anambra State),” stated Iluyomade, the head of enforcement.
He declared that two individuals are being prosecuted in court by NAFDAC for importing counterfeit toothpaste brands.
NAFDAC DG Adeyeye, citing the agency’s recent enforcement action in Onitsha’s Upper Iweka drug market, insisted that the agency had destroyed counterfeit, fabricated, subpar, and unregistered goods.
Director of Enforcement Iluyomade concluded by stating that the agency has made strides in prosecuting criminals, pointing out that “NAFDAC hit a record of 64 convictions between June 2025 and June 2026.” the greatest in its history.
“We go through the process,” he said, praising the achievement. A judge found one lab that produced fake drinks guilty on all eight counts and sentenced them to five years in jail in December.
