How e-pharmacy policy aims to fix medicine access gaps

Nigeria’s health system continues to grapple with persistent challenges, including high out-of-pocket healthcare spending, uneven access to essential medicines, shortages in the health workforce, and limited availability of family planning services. These gaps affect millions of Nigerians across both urban and rural communities, often forcing households to rely on informal or unregulated sources for basic healthcare needs.

At the same time, rapid growth in mobile connectivity, digital payments, and e-commerce has transformed service delivery across multiple sectors, opening new pathways for healthcare access. These digital advances have begun to bridge long-standing gaps in distribution, efficiency, and convenience—particularly within pharmaceutical services—creating opportunities to reach populations previously excluded from formal systems.

Against this backdrop, the launch of Nigeria’s National Electronic Pharmacy Policy (NEPP) represents a significant turning point in pharmaceutical service delivery. The policy introduces, for the first time, a comprehensive regulatory framework governing e-pharmacy and hybrid digital pharmacy platforms nationwide. NEPP establishes unified standards for licensing, dispensing, data protection, advertising, and professional accountability in digital pharmacy services. By setting clear rules for operators and consumers alike, the policy formally integrates e-pharmacy into Nigeria’s broader health system, positioning digital platforms as regulated complements to physical pharmacies rather than informal or unlicensed alternatives.

Within this framework, e-pharmacy offers government and patients a practical tool to improve convenience, confidentiality, and access to essential medicines, particularly for underserved populations in both remote and densely populated urban areas. At the policy’s official inauguration, health sector stakeholders emphasised that NEPP would strengthen prescription governance, improve medicine traceability, and leverage private-sector capacity to support public health objectives, while expanding access to safe and affordable pharmaceutical products. The policy also extends licensed pharmaceutical services beyond physical premises, introducing regulatory guardrails designed to protect consumers, enhance service reliability, and enable the scalable and secure delivery of medicines across Nigeria.

Speaking at the event, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, said NEPP would modernise pharmaceutical regulation while ensuring that Nigerians in all parts of the country can access safe, quality-assured medicines. Represented by the Director of Food and Drug Services, Olubumi Aribeana, Pate noted that despite rapid digital expansion, Nigeria’s pharmaceutical sector remained fragmented, with minimal oversight of online medicine sales.

He explained that these gaps had enabled the proliferation of unlicensed vendors, counterfeit drugs, and widespread misinformation, posing serious risks to public health. “Uncontrolled access to medicines online has created dangerous vulnerabilities, exposing citizens to substandard products and unregulated sellers,” Pate said, describing NEPP as a critical safeguard for patients.

“Today marks a bold step towards modernising healthcare delivery and guaranteeing that every Nigerian—regardless of location or social circumstance—can access safe, affordable, quality-assured medicines. The NEPP provides a clear, enforceable framework to ensure that innovation in electronic pharmacy does not compromise patient safety or professional accountability across the pharmaceutical value chain.

“With this policy, we are building a nationally coordinated, transparent, secure, and patient-centred e-pharmacy ecosystem that integrates digital innovation with established health standards,” he added.

NEPP sets out licensing and accreditation requirements for digital pharmacy platforms, enables real-time monitoring and traceability of medicines, and expands access to essential drugs for underserved and hard-to-reach populations nationwide. Pate said the policy strengthens accountability across the pharmaceutical value chain and reflects extensive collaboration among stakeholders, regulators, and professional bodies. He commended contributors involved in developing the policy’s digital governance, data protection, and operational frameworks, describing NEPP as the product of strategic, multi-agency cooperation.

Ibrahim-Babashehu Ahmed, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN), said NEPP provides clear regulatory direction, with PCN designated as the primary implementing and supervisory agency. According to Ahmed, the policy—approved by the Coordinating Minister of Health and endorsed by the Minister of Justice—defines enforceable standards while cautioning operators against non-compliance. He expressed confidence that implementation challenges would be minimal, citing strong institutional backing, clear guidelines, and alignment with national health priorities.

Munir Elelu, Director and team lead at the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria Foundation, described NEPP as an innovative policy that strengthens primary healthcare delivery, family planning access, and community-level pharmaceutical services. Elelu said evidence gathered before the policy’s adoption showed Nigeria’s e-pharmacy market was already emerging, making regulation essential to ensure safe, equitable, and coordinated growth. “A significant number of women of reproductive age are willing to use digital channels for essential health products once access barriers are removed,” he noted, underscoring growing demand for regulated e-pharmacy services.

Dr Usman Abdulrahman, a consultant physician and member of the Nigerian Infectious Diseases Society, described NEPP as a hopeful development that directly addresses everyday barriers to accessing licensed pharmaceutical care. He explained that for many families outside major cities, reaching a licensed pharmacy can be costly or impossible, leaving them vulnerable to counterfeit or unsafe medicines.

According to him, NEPP provides pharmacists and health-tech innovators with a safer, regulated environment to operate, fostering trust, professional practice, and sector growth. However, Abdulrahman acknowledged potential concerns for small community pharmacies and informal drug sellers who may struggle with compliance costs, technology requirements, and stricter oversight. He also warned that poor internet connectivity, weak logistics, and low digital literacy in some regions could initially favour urban populations if implementation is uneven. “In human terms, NEPP tests how Nigeria balances safety with inclusion, innovation with compassion, and regulation with empathy,” he said.

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Dr Adewale-Adeleye Premiere, President of the Association of Resident Doctors at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, praised NEPP for its potential to curb antimicrobial resistance and the circulation of fake or misused medicines. He noted that widespread antibiotic abuse has created serious health risks and said regulating sales by unlicensed vendors is critical to improving patient safety.

David Adeyemi, founder and CEO of Pharmachain Technologies and a policy contributor, said NEPP was designed to avoid the implementation failures that undermined earlier reforms. He explained that the policy would clearly identify government-approved platforms, helping consumers distinguish licensed services from unsafe online vendors. “With visible regulatory markers, Nigerians will know which platforms are authorised, improving trust and access to quality medicines,” Adeyemi said.

Overall, NEPP aims to modernise Nigeria’s pharmaceutical sector, protect consumers, strengthen regulatory oversight, and safely integrate digital innovation into healthcare delivery. Stakeholders expressed optimism that, with careful implementation, the policy would reduce counterfeit medicines, improve prescription adherence, enhance patient safety, and position Nigeria as a leader in regulated digital pharmacy in Africa.