ABUJA, NIGERIA — The Federal Government of Nigeria has formally classified domestic medical diagnostic manufacturing as a strategic national asset to boost local production and reduce reliance on imported laboratory reagents. Announcing the nigeria medical diagnostics strategy at the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria conference in Abuja, Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako emphasized that diagnostic sovereignty remains fundamental to national public health security.
Currently, over 90 percent of diagnostic consumables, test kits, and laboratory equipment used across tertiary hospitals are imported. This high dependence leaves the national health system vulnerable to foreign exchange fluctuations, trade bottlenecks, and global supply chain disruptions during public health emergencies.
Diagnostic Policy Targets & Fiscal Reforms
The national policy shifts prioritize domestic laboratory production and market security:
Policy Target & Metric
Operational Implementation Strategy
Import Reduction (>90% currently imported)
Local production of reagents, test kits & diagnostic machinery
MarketFit initiative framework to attract manufacturing capital
Market Security
Guaranteed off-take agreements for domestic diagnostic producers
Advancing the Nigeria Medical Diagnostics Strategy to Secure Supply Chains
Implementing the nigeria medical diagnostics strategy requires close alignment between regulatory agencies, clinical laboratory directors, and private investors. To stimulate local manufacturing, the Ministry of Health is designing targeted fiscal incentives and expedited regulatory approval pathways through NAFDAC. These reforms operate under the broader MarketFit initiative to attract long-term capital into domestic biotechnology and laboratory manufacturing facilities.
Industry stakeholders, led by Guild of Medical Laboratory Directors President Dr. Samuel Fele, strongly backed the government’s classification. Laboratory leaders emphasized that guaranteed government off-take agreements are essential to de-risk private investment and ensure domestic producers reach commercial scale. Ultimately, establishing local diagnostic manufacturing safeguards laboratory testing capacity, strengthens outbreak surveillance, and reinforces health system independence across Nigeria.
Why It Matters: Establishing domestic manufacturing for medical diagnostics enhances national health security, ensuring uninterrupted lab testing capacities during public health emergencies.
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