- The Senate ban on sachet alcohol demands full enforcement by NAFDAC no later than December 2025.
- Lawmakers say sachet alcohol endangers youths and fuels addiction, violence, and road accidents.
- The Senate accuses manufacturers of lobbying to delay the NAFDAC sachet alcohol ban.
- Senators insist the ban is necessary to protect public health and Nigeria’s future.
The Senate has taken a decisive stand against the continued circulation of sachet alcohol, directing the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to stop its production and sale by December 2025, without any further postponement.
The directive follows a motion presented by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong (Cross River South), who expressed frustration that the enforcement of the ban had been shifted multiple times because manufacturers kept lobbying for extensions. He described the delay as dangerous and irresponsible, stressing that every additional day the product remains in circulation puts more young people at risk.
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Ekpenyong explained that sachet alcohol is cheap, portable, and easy to hide, making it accessible even to minors. According to him, these drinks have contributed to school violence, domestic disputes, and fatal road accidents.
“It is packaged like sweets, children can buy it for as little as pocket change,” he said. “This is destroying lives and futures.”
Lawmakers from both political sides supported the motion, describing the proliferation of sachet alcohol as a silent public-health crisis. Senator Anthony Ani (Ebonyi South) referred to the products as “slow poison spreading through streets, motor parks, and markets.”
Nigeria previously signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2018 to phase out small-packaged alcoholic drinks by 2023. The date was later shifted to 2025 to give manufacturers time to adjust. But senators are furious that some companies are still lobbying for yet another extension.
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The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, praised his colleagues for standing firm, calling the decision “a moral and patriotic stand to protect Nigeria’s future.”
With this resolution, the Senate expects NAFDAC to begin full enforcement and ensure that sachet alcohol disappears from circulation by the end of 2025.
