The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) recorded a GH¢70 million surplus in 2025 but identified ageing laboratory equipment and illicit products as public health concerns.  

The Deputy Director of Finance, Samuel Adom-Siaw, presented the Authority’s audited financial report at the 2025 FDA Annual Stakeholders’ Meeting in Accra.  

He said the surplus increased from GH¢46 million in 2024, representing a 51 per cent rise, while total assets increased from GH¢296 million to GH¢358 million and liabilities declined from GH¢12 million to GH¢3.4 million.  

Mr Adom-Siaw said total revenue was GH¢420 million, comprising GH¢278 million in internally generated funds (IGF), GH¢78 million in donor inflows and GH¢63 million in Government of Ghana subsidies.  

He said IGF accounted for 66 per cent of total revenue, donor support 19 per cent and government subsidies 15 per cent.  

Expenditure increased marginally from GH¢266 million in 2024 to GH¢267 million in 2025 despite increased staff compensation and operational demands, he said.  

Mr Adom-Siaw said the FDA had projected GH¢374 million in IGF but realised GH¢278 million, resulting in a shortfall of GH¢95 million, largely attributed to exchange-rate movements.  

He said the Authority would continue prudent expenditure management, improve revenue mobilisation and periodically review its fee structure in consultation with stakeholders.  

Presenting the operational report, the Quality Assurance Manager, Joseph Ofosu-Siaw, said the FDA received 24,446 product applications in 2025 and processed 24,225, resulting in 20,205 approvals.  

He said facility inspections reached 15,457, while 47,189 consignments were inspected at the ports, representing a 21.7 per cent increase over the 2024 figure.  

Mr Ofosu-Siaw said the FDA operated in 11 of Ghana’s 16 regions and was present at 11 of 32 border posts, with plans to expand its operations nationwide.  

He said 62 per cent of regulated products registered in 2025 were locally produced, compared with 33 per cent in 2024.  

Mr Ofosu-Siaw said market surveillance remained a major regulatory priority, with 2,250 surveillance exercises conducted and 24,755 retail outlets visited during the year.  

The Authority retrieved 215,876 non-compliant products, while 8,693 street food vendors were trained and 1,369 permits were issued under the street food safety programme, he said.  

Mr Ofosu-Siaw said 2,520 unwanted medicines were collected under the Take Back Unwanted Medicines initiative, while 3,089 individual safety reports were received, with validated information submitted to the World Health Organisation’s global database.  

He said the FDA received 7,551 samples for laboratory testing in 2025, representing a 76 per cent increase over 2024, but achieved 77 per cent testing coverage against an 85 per cent target.,  

Mr Ofosu-Siaw said some laboratory equipment was between eight and 20 years old, creating maintenance challenges, particularly in laboratories operating around the clock.  

He appealed to stakeholders and development partners to support the Authority with modern laboratory equipment to strengthen its testing capacity.  

The Director of Legal Services, Perpetual Vicentia Yankson, said the FDA issued about 80 warnings and 233 administrative fines in 2025 over various regulatory breaches.  

She said the violations involved unapproved advertisements, sale of unregistered products, pharmaceutical recalls, unlicensed cold-storage facilities and illicit tobacco activities.  

Mrs Yankson reminded businesses that advertisements for regulated products required prior approval from the FDA.  

She said the Legal Services Directorate provided at least 212 legal opinions and handled seven civil and 11 criminal cases during the year.  

Mrs Yankson cautioned businesses against manufacturing, importing, distributing or selling regulated products without registration, saying the Public Health Act, 2012 (Act 851), provided requirements for product registration, advertising, inspections and the safe disposal of unwholesome products.  

The FDA said its public education campaigns reached more than 12 million people in 2025, with messages focused on tobacco use, drug safety and food safety.  

Management said the Authority would intensify intelligence-led enforcement and risk-based surveillance and strengthen collaboration with the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and other institutions to address illicit imports and unregistered products.  

It said that 77 per cent implementation of its current five-year strategic plan had provided a foundation for the next phase of its regulatory agenda.