Senate has directed the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC and other relevant regulatory bodies to strictly enforce the ban on the packaging of high-strength alcoholic beverages in sachet formats beginning December 2025.
The Red Chamber also resolved that no additional extension should be granted beyond the current moratorium next month.
The resolutions were sequel to the adoption of a motion sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpeyong (APC Cross River South) on the need to halt further extension of the phase-out of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachet formats.
Presenting the motion, Senator Ekpenyong said the directive was in line with global regulatory standards and international best practices aimed at reducing alcohol-related harm among Nigerians.
He recalled that in 2018, the Federal Ministry of Health, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCCPC, NAFDAC, and industry bodies including the Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers, AFBTE, voluntarily signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding, MoU to gradually phase out sachet and small-bottle alcoholic drinks.
Senator Ekpenyong explained that the Federal Government, upon appeals from manufacturers, had already granted a one-year moratorium in 2024 to enable producers to exhaust existing stock and transition to compliant packaging alternatives.
The lawmaker, however, expressed concern that some manufacturers were lobbying for another extension, which he said would undermine regulatory authority, endanger public health, and perpetuate the circulation of harmful alcoholic products in the market.
He said: “As the December 2025 deadline approaches, certain manufacturers are lobbying for another extension, thereby undermining the regulatory process and jeopardizing public health.
“We cannot continue to expose our youths to cheap, easily accessible alcohol that destroys lives and endangers public safety.”
He warned that the continued availability of high-strength alcoholic beverages in sachet form has contributed to addiction, impaired cognitive development, school dropouts, domestic violence, and increased road accidents, particularly among commercial drivers and young people.
Senator Ekpenyong further noted that manufacturers who had complied in good faith were now at a disadvantage against those who continued to produce non-compliant products, creating an uneven market.
Following extensive deliberation, lawmakers who contributed to the motion commended Ekpenyong for raising the issue, stressing the need for stricter enforcement and public sensitization.
Senator Anthony Ani (APC Ebonyi South) backed the call, describing the easy availability of cheap alcohol as a growing social menace.
“The easy availability of cheap alcohol is fueling social vices. We must act now to save our young generation from self-destruction,” he said.
In his remarks, the Senate President Godswill Akpabio described the resolution as a timely step toward safeguarding public health and youth welfare, urging NAFDAC to ensure full enforcement of the ban by December 2025, warning that any further extension would undermine Nigeria’s anti-substance abuse efforts.
“This is a matter of urgency. The agency must act decisively to protect Nigerians, especially our young people, from the dangers of unregulated alcohol consumption,” he said.
