By Ojoma Akor
The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare has commended DCL Laboratory Products Ltd for delivering quality medical and laboratory products in the country.
Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziak Adekunle Salako, gave the commendation on Friday at the organization’s 20th anniversary celebration in Abuja.
Represented by Dr Okpikpi Okpako, the director of Federal Medical Centers at the ministry, he said the organization has done well for itself and the Nigerian populace.
He said, “We must understand that government cannot do it all. So it is a most welcome development that DCL Laboratory Products Ltd has been in the Nigerian market for 20 years and still counting. Looking at the caliber of people that attended the event and all that has been said about the organization, it has done very well for itself and the Nigerian populace, particularly in the health sector.”
He enjoined other organizations to emulate what DCL Laboratory Products Ltd is doing.
The minister said, for instance, that the organization has engaged over 200 persons who have been trained and are sustaining DCL Laboratory Products Ltd today.
“So, we encourage other marketers and other captains of industry to do the same by engaging young Nigerians and training them. So that it will not just be about providing them with fish. But teaching them how to fish, as DCL has done, makes DCL a worthy partner. We wish that they keep the fire burning and sustain what they are doing,” he said.
He said that new federal medical centers have been established, and old ones have been upgraded.
“Some of them have even been transformed into teaching hospitals; the whole idea is to ensure that every part of this country has a touch of a tertiary hospital through the Federal Ministry of Health,” he added.
Dr. Anyanwu Okechukwu, Group Managing Director of DCL Laboratory Products Ltd, said he is happy about the organization’s 20th anniversary because it means 20 years of improvement in medical diagnosis and public health in Nigeria.
He said, “Before we came into the market, if you go to markets, like Idumota in Lagos, and the Head Bridge in Onitsha, Anambra state, you will see where they put laboratory kits that are supposed to be at two to eight degrees centigrade on a store shelf; open store shelves, and they are selling them. So, they care about selling and making a profit.
“But the story is different today, because now people know where to get quality products. They know because laboratory reagents that must be stored at two to eight degrees centigrade must be kept at that temperature. Otherwise, if you use these kits to test patients, they will give misleading results, and then the patient will be at the receiving end of it, because the doctor depends on the outcome of the laboratory test.”
He added that results that mislead doctors endanger patients and further affect the health of the population and the country’s development.
The DCL GMD also commended the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and other regulatory agencies, adding that his organization works with them to improve patient safety in Nigeria.
He said the amount of import duties imposed by the federal government on healthcare products is acceptable, but that there is a need to put in place a mechanism, such as medically qualified personnel at ports, to identify medical products correctly.
He said, “For example, if you bring a blood bank, which is used to preserve blood, into the country, it is a problem if it is now being mistaken as a regular household fridge. So there should be a mechanism in place, possibly to have a medically qualified person at the port to be able to say,’ this is a blood bank. It is not a household fridge, but if you ask me about the amount the government requires people to pay to bring in medical commodities, I think it is not bad. “
He also thanked the federal government for providing an enabling environment for local industries.
‘I also commend this government for what it is doing for local production of medical products; providing the right environment, especially as it has to do with payment of duties. The government has made it such that manufacturing medical items in Nigeria is duty-free. This is a way to help improve local production in Nigeria, and I’m glad with the government of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for this idea, for the policy they put in place,” he added.
