…cites economic implications
The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has expressed concern about the renewed enforcement on the ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages in sachets and pet bottles by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and called for its immediate stoppage.
NECA described the enforcement as a regulatory misstep with far-reaching economic and governance implications, just as it demanded evidence-based and respect for due process by NAFDAC and other regulatory agencies in the country.
According to the employers’ body, the renewed enforcement of sachet alcohol ban, runs contrary to the directive of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation dated 15 December 2025 suspending the ban, as well as the resolution of the House of Representatives of 14 March 2024 which called for restraint and broader stakeholder engagement.
It noted that the enforcement was already disrupting legitimate businesses, unsettling ongoing investments, placing thousands of jobs at risk, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s regulatory stability at a time when investor trust is critically important.
While it supports the protection of minors, the removal of unsafe products from the market, and the pursuit of strong public health outcomes, it however, tagged the current approach as “misdirected”.
It argued: “It disproportionately targets compliant and regulated manufacturers while failing to address the real drivers of underage access and the growing challenge of illicit substance abuse across the country”.
Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, the director-general of NECA, stated that regulation must be rooted in evidence, proportionality, and the rule of law.
According to Oyerinde, it is unacceptable to punish compliance or criminalise products that passed established regulatory approval processes while ignoring clear gaps in retail enforcement and the spread of far more dangerous unregulated substances. He stressed that Nigeria needs smarter, data driven enforcement, not blanket bans that destroy jobs, discourage investment, and fail to solve the underlying problem.
Oyerinde noted that the alcoholic products now being targeted were tested, registered, and periodically revalidated under NAFDAC’s own scientific and technical procedures. Alcohol strength is measured globally using Alcohol by Volume, ABV, and the products in question fall within internationally recognised ranges for spirits. Their alcohol content is clearly printed on labels and was approved within Nigeria’s regulatory framework. He stated that abruptly portraying such products as inherently dangerous, without the presentation of new, transparent scientific evidence, raises serious questions about regulatory consistency and fairness.
On the issue of underage drinking, Oyerinde emphasised that access control was fundamentally an enforcement matter, not a packaging matter. Alcoholic beverages already carry clear warnings indicating they are not for persons under 18 and should be consumed responsibly. Where minors gain access, he said, the failure lies in weak monitoring of retail outlets and poor enforcement of age restrictions. Addressing this requires stricter licensing, compliance checks, and sanctions for erring retailers, not the elimination of packaging formats that serve adult consumers lawfully.
He explained that sachet and small pack formats were an affordability response within Nigeria’s economic structure, where many adult consumers make low value, daily purchases. Eliminating these formats will not eliminate demand. Instead, it risks pushing consumers toward informal and unregulated alternatives, increasing public health risks while shrinking the formal economy.
Oyerinde also expressed concern that while enforcement pressure is being concentrated on a regulated segment of the beverage industry, the country continues to face the spread of more dangerous substances among young people, including illicit narcotics and abused pharmaceuticals. Directing limited enforcement resources toward compliant manufacturers while more harmful unregulated products circulate widely represents a serious misalignment of policy priorities.
The economic consequences of the ban are significant. The wines and spirits value chain supports large numbers of direct and indirect jobs across manufacturing, packaging, distribution, transportation, retail, and agriculture. At a time when businesses are grappling with high operating costs, currency pressures, and weak consumer purchasing power, sudden regulatory shocks of this nature threaten livelihoods, reduce government revenue, and undermine investor confidence in the predictability of Nigeria’s policy environment.
Oyerinde added that environmental concerns linked to plastic waste, while legitimate, should be addressed through improved waste management systems, recycling frameworks, and extended producer responsibility mechanisms that apply across sectors. He warned that using environmental shortcomings as a basis for selective product bans confuses waste management policy with product safety regulation.
He reiterated that the organised private sector is not opposed to regulation. On the contrary, NECA supports strong, science based rules that protect consumers and ensure product quality. What employers reject is regulatory action driven by sentiment, selective enforcement, and disregard for economic consequences and due process.
NECA therefore calls for the immediate suspension of the ongoing enforcement actions in line with the Federal Government’s earlier directive and urges a return to structured, evidence based dialogue involving regulators, industry, public health experts, and consumer representatives. The focus, Oyerinde stressed, should be on strengthening retail level enforcement to prevent underage access, expanding public education on responsible consumption, intensifying action against illicit drugs and unregistered alcohol, and developing practical environmental solutions through collaboration rather than prohibition.
