Regulatory Control on High-Risk Products (Health & Beauty and Grocery Categories)

Regulations are a form of limitations enforced on the operations of a company according to the requirements presented by a regulatory agency. It could also mean a legal rule that covers a particular social or economic activity of a company. Now, relating it with Jumia, it basically means that there are limitations in listing certain products on our website if they are not approved by the regulatory agency. As we all know, the regulatory body we have for the Health & Beauty and Grocery category is the National Agency For Food And Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC). The primary purpose of this body is to safeguard public health by ensuring that only the right quality drugs, food and other regulated products are manufactured, imported, distributed, advertised, sold and used in Nigeria.

What are the products that need to be verified by NAFDAC?

On our platform, we have the Sensitive Category like the Health & Beauty and the Grocery categories. They are termed “Sensitive” because these categories contain products that we ingest or consume and products we apply on our skin. There are limitations to list these products on our website as a seller. When we say limitation, it does not mean you cannot list these products on our website, what it simply means is that the products that fall under the categories above have to be registered with NAFDAC.

You may not be clear on the products that fall under the categories we listed above. Products such as drugs, chemicals, consumable goods, cosmetics, biological, and medical services which are produced in or outside Nigeria are examples of products that are required by the agency to have the NAFDAC registration number.

What are the steps we take to ensure our sellers are complying with this policy?

We have a routine check which is carried out by our Quality Control Team to flag products that fall under the categories listed above that do not have NAFDAC registration numbers.

When the routine check is done, a communication carrying a 24 hour notice period is sent to all sellers, informing them about the delisting actions that are about to take place, which is why it is very important sellers check their emails daily or updates from us. If you have your NAFDAC registration documents, you could always raise a claim within 24 hours of receiving the email, and your products will not be delisted. 

If you do not have a NAFDAC registration number for these products, they will be delisted. You would be required to visit any of the NAFDAC offices closest to you and follow the processes given to you on how to obtain one. We could always relist your products once your NAFDAC registration documents have been sent to us.

Note: 

It is important to note that all documents submitted regarding NAFDAC Registration go through our Legal team for a thorough check. Hence, we advise that your documents are genuine and certified by NAFDAC.

How does registering your products with NAFDAC affect you as a seller and Jumia as a whole?

Positive Impacts

• As discussed above, the purpose of having a regulatory body such as NAFDAC is to safeguard the public’s health and we as a company have the vision to build the most beloved and trusted shopping destination for Africans. These two statements work hand in hand, as verifying or registering your products under NAFDAC will show that your products and their ingredients are authentic, safe to use or consume, thereby earning the trust of our customers and we as a company, achieving our Number one vision.

• Having a NAFDAC registration number and inputting it while listing products on our website helps improve the content of your products as it gives the customer a certain level of trust in shopping from your store which will generate more sales for you as a seller.

Negative Impacts

• When products that fall under the categories we mentioned above are not verified by NAFDAC, there may be some ingredients in these products that might have a risk factor to the end-user. This may lead to health issues making us lose the trust of our customers. These customers may never want to shop on our platform again because of this negative experience.

• This can also lead to lawsuits due to the health issues that the customer may have encountered. Sometimes, we may have to involve the seller of the product in question in these law cases.

• Lastly, it could lead to the delisting of the seller’s store completely from our platform.

For more information on how to get your products registered or verified with NAFDAC, please visit their official website here.

Going through this writeup, we hope you now have a broader knowledge on the importance of having your products verified by NAFDAC. Let us work hand in hand to make Jumia the most beloved and trusted shopping destination for Africans.