The Lagos State Government has begun moves to domesticate the National Policy on Cosmetics Safety and Health as part of efforts to strengthen regulation of cosmetic products and procedures in the state.
The policy and its implementation plan were formally presented to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Health, Dr. Kemi Ogunyemi, during the exit meeting of the Lagos State Engagement on the National Policy on Cosmetics Safety and Health held at the Conference Room of the Lagos State Ministry of Health on Friday.
The meeting marked the conclusion of a four-day stakeholder engagement that began on Tuesday, March 10, at the Sojourner Hotel in GRA, Ikeja, where participants examined the cosmetics safety landscape in Lagos and developed a State Cosmetics Safety Action Plan.
Speaking during the meeting, Ogunyemi said the engagement came at a critical time, citing a recent cosmetic surgery-related death in Lagos currently under investigation by the Health Facilities Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA).
According to her, the state government considers patient safety a top priority and is committed to ensuring stricter oversight of cosmetic products and procedures.
“This engagement could not have come at a better time. Only this week, we had an unfortunate incident where a well-known lady died in Lagos following cosmetic surgery,” she said.
Ogunyemi added that the relevant authorities were investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident, including the drugs used and their sources.
She stressed that stronger regulation across the cosmetics value chain from manufacturers and suppliers to training institutions and health facilities was necessary to prevent similar occurrences.
“When even one person dies, it means something has gone wrong, and we certainly do not want such incidents to happen again,” she said, assuring stakeholders that the Lagos State Government would ensure effective implementation of the policy.
The Special Adviser also noted that Lagos would continue to lead the way for other states in implementing the policy.
Director of Cosmetics Safety in the Food and Drug Services Department of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Paul Okhakhu, explained that the policy was developed to address the growing number of adverse health cases linked to unsafe cosmetic products.
“We have been seeing cases of people experiencing adverse events as a result of the use of adulterated, wrongly formulated or substandard cosmetic products, and because of this the government decided to take the matter seriously,” he said.
Okhakhu said the policy was validated in Lagos before being launched at the 66th National Council on Health in Calabar.
He added that it was designed to guide regulatory actions and help states develop specific action plans to tackle cosmetics safety challenges.
According to him, the Federal Government is also developing a national dashboard to monitor implementation progress across states.
He noted that Lagos was selected for early engagement because of its strategic role as Nigeria’s commercial hub.
“If we are able to get it right in Lagos, we believe we can get it right in other states,” Okhakhu said.
In her remarks, the Director, Pharmaceutical Services in the Lagos State Ministry of Health, Pharm.
Olawale Poluyi, described the engagement as a significant milestone in the implementation process of the policy in the state.
“Every journey begins with a step, and today marks an important step in the implementation of this policy,” she said.
Poluyi commended the Special Adviser for receiving the delegation despite her busy schedule and assured participants that the ministry would ensure that resolutions reached during the engagement translate into concrete actions.
She added that the state government remains committed to strengthening cosmetics safety and consumer protection.
The four-day engagement brought together 49 participants drawn from federal and state government agencies, regulatory bodies, academia, industry associations, cosmetology practitioners, civil society organisations and the media to deliberate on ways to enhance cosmetics safety and safeguard public health in Lagos State.
