Colexa Biosensor commissions First In-Vitro Diagnostics Factory in Sub-Saharan Africa

…unveils OnPoint Blood Glucose Meter and Strips

…FG reiterates support for local manufacturing of diabetes test kits, strips

Colexa Biosensor Limited, a subsidiary of Codix Pharma Limited, has made an audacious move to transform Africa's Healthcare system and provide better health expectancy with the commissioning of the first In-Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) Factory in Sub-Saharan Africa and the unveiling of OnPoint Blood Glucose Meter & Strips duly evaluated, approved, and registered by the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control.

The official opening ceremony held at the company's office in Ilupeju, Lagos, serves as a springboard to different health issues in Africa. This flagship product addresses the prevalence of diabetes in Africa by manufacturing blood glucose meters and strips for millions of people living with the disease to help in combating the disease and raising awareness on early detection and management to aid recovery and wellness. 

With an installed capacity of 3.6 million packs and an opportunity to scale up to 10.8 million packs annually, the company is poised to meet local demand and export, starting with its subsidiaries across West Africa, with the added advantage of reducing the need for foreign exchange in procuring raw materials. 

In his opening address, the Executive Chairman, Colexa Biosensor Limited, Mr. Sammy Ogunjimi, stated that with the firm's focus on Africa and with Nigeria as its base, it aims to extend its solution throughout Africa and the world and contribute its efforts to correcting the deficit in the balance of trade and to raising the volume of exports to improve the foreign exchange situation.

He said, "We aim to localize and backward integrate to reduce our dependence on imports and this factory is the first step towards achieving that goal. As a testament to our utmost desire to ensure consistent product and service quality, we are happy to announce that this factory has received 2 Quality Management System certifications - 1st the ISO 13485:2016 (IVD) Certificate, and the ISO 9001: 2015 (process) certificate. We have also received a successful independent comparative evaluation of OnPoint BGM with the market gold standard through the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN). Colexa Biosensor Limited will provide direct employment for over 700 staff and several more indirectly”.

In his keynote address, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, reiterated the commitment of FG to patronize local manufacturers of healthcare products and ensure the prevention of spending the country's short supply of foreign exchange on importation of pharmaceutical products that can be produced locally.

" Our President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, sees it as unacceptable that 99% of medical devices and more than 70% of our generic pharmaceutical equipments in Nigeria are imported. The Federal Government will purchase locally manufactured diabetes test kits because we know that diabetes is a very significant cause of morbidity in our country. We are committed to developing our healthcare industry to contribute to the African healthcare market by providing the critical commodities and services that will optimize the health of our populations, ensure our health security and retain all the economic value in our country", he said.

Speaking earlier, the Chairman of the occasion, Prince Julius Adewale Adelusi-Adeluyi, a former Minister of Health, urged the government to ensure an environment that enables companies like Colexa Biosensor to thrive and remain sustainable. Some of the ways he proposed that the government can support them include the patronage of the products and total removal of import duty on pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment, raw materials, and accessories, rather than having to apply for Import Duty Exemption Certificate (IDEC) each time, which sometimes take up to two months.

In her goodwill message, the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof (Mrs.) Mojisola Adeyeye spoke about the attainment of Maturity level 3 by NAFDAC as a major opportunity that would ensure that quality products from Nigeria are accessible and acceptable to African Countries. She hailed Sammy Ogunjimi and Lekan Asuni for their vision of ensuring that the country can meet its local consumption of IVD products.