The Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye, has received the Special African Leadership Commendation Award at the 16th African Business Leadership Awards (ABLA) in London, United Kingdom (UK) for reforms that transformed the agency and positioned Nigeria’s medicines regulation to global standards.

Adeyeye received the award during the two-day African Business Leadership Awards programme held at the House of Lords, Palace of Westminster, on July 3, 2026, themed: “From Vision to Velocity: Driving Africa’s Next Wave of Growth and Leadership.”

The awards ceremony was hosted by Baroness Sandy Verma and attended by senior political and business leaders from across Africa and the United Kingdom.

The award recognition followed what the organisers described as a rigorous, merit-based assessment by the Global Advisory Board of the African Leadership Organisation (ALO), which tracked her leadership record, institutional impact and the turnaround of NAFDAC since assumed office in November 2017.

The ALO International Advisory Council, include former Tanzanian President, Jakaya Kikwete as the chairman; former Liberian Vice President, Dr Jewel Howard Taylor; First Commander of US Africa Command, Gen. William Kip Ward; former Premier of Gauteng and Deputy Secretary General of the African National Congress of South Africa, Nomvula Mokonyane and the Communications Advisor to the President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Victor Oladokun

According to the award organiser, Adeyeye inherited a regulatory agency weighed down by over N3.2 billion in debt, with between 70 and 80 per cent of laboratory equipment across its seven laboratories non-functional, limited inspection vehicles, poor staff morale, little digital infrastructure and a World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Benchmarking rating below Maturity Level One.

Other benchmarks tracked by the organisers include, Adeyeye’s clearance of over N3.1 billion in inherited debt within her first year in office, while identifying about N200 million in fictitious liabilities.

Investment of over N7 billion in laboratory equipment, procurement of over 150 operational vehicles and provision of laptops and desktop computers for more than half of its over 2,000 workforce.

The award organisers also highlighted digital transition with about 90 per cent of its regulatory processes now been digitised as well as the introduction of standard operating procedures across NAFDAC‘s operations.

NAFDAC, under Adeyeye also obtained ISO 9001 certification in 2019 and has maintained the certification through subsequent recertification exercises.

The reforms have also earned the agency international recognition.

In March 2022, NAFDAC attained WHO Global Benchmarking Maturity Level Three, a status retained after a successful re-benchmarking exercise in June 2025.

The agency’s Central Drug Laboratory in Lagos secured WHO Prequalification in September 2023, while Nigeria also attained Pre-Accession Pre-Applicant status in the Pharmaceutical Inspection and Cooperation Scheme (PIC/S).

In 2025, Nigeria became the 24th member of the International Council for Harmonisation (ICH), joining a select group of medicines regulatory authorities participating in the global standards-setting body.

NAFDAC further credited its Five Plus Five regulatory policy with reducing the importation of pharmaceuticals already produced locally by about 70 per cent, a move it said has encouraged renewed investments by international pharmaceutical companies and strengthened domestic manufacturing capacity.

NAFDAC said it is now pursuing WHO Maturity Level Four and World Listed Authority status to enhance the global acceptance and export potential of medicines manufactured in Nigeria.

On the day-one of the ceremony, Adeyeye delivered a keynote address at the Hilton London Metropole on the future of African universities, advocating curriculum reforms aligned with international regulatory standards and wider adoption of digital technologies in higher education.

Speaking after receiving the award, Adeyeye dedicated the recognition to NAFDAC employees.

Adeyeye noted that when she assumed office in 2017, the agency ranked below the first level of the WHO Global Benchmarking framework but has since advanced to Maturity Level Three following extensive institutional reforms.

“We successfully re-benchmarked in June 2025, a distinction held by only 35 per cent of regulatory agencies worldwide. This recognition belongs to every member of the NAFDAC family, whose tireless work makes every achievement attributed to my leadership possible,” she said.

She, however, added that the recognition reflected the collective efforts of the entire NAFDAC workforce in repositioning the agency as a globally respected medicines regulatory authority.