According to the agency, the widespread availability of high-alcohol-content beverages in sachets and small containers has made alcohol cheap, easily accessible, and easily concealable, contributing to rising cases of underage drinking, addiction, domestic violence, road accidents, school dropouts, and other social vices.
Adeyeye noted that placing warning labels such as “Not for children” on sachets and small containers had proven ineffective due to societal realities.
“Many parents do not even know their children consume sachet alcohol because the pack size is small, cheap, and easily concealed,” she said.
She revealed that reports from schools had shown disturbing trends, including a recent case in which a teacher disclosed that a student claimed he could not sit for an examination without first taking a sachet of alcohol.
NAFDAC recalled that in December 2018, it, alongside the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with manufacturers to phase out sachet and small-volume alcohol packaging by January 31, 2024.
The moratorium was later extended to December 2025 to allow manufacturers to exhaust existing stock and reconfigure their production lines.
“The current Senate resolution aligns with the spirit and letter of that agreement and with Nigeria’s commitment to the World Health Assembly Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol,” she said.
Adeyeye stressed that the ban was not punitive but protective.