| National Drug Authority (NDA) | |
| Key People: | Medard Bitekyerezo Chairman[1] David Nahamya Secretary to the Authority[2] |
| Industry: | Drug regulation and supervision |
| Products: | Pharmaceutical licenses and drug regulation |
| Homepage: | Homepage |
The National Drug Authority (NDA) is a government-owned organisation in Uganda, mandated to regulate drugs in the country, including their manufacture, importation, distribution, and licensing.[3]
NDA was created by the Ugandan legislature in 1993. It began operations in 1994 as the National Drug Authority (NDA).[4] At that time, the mission of the NDA was to regulate the manufacture, importation, and use of human and veterinary drugs in the country. In 2014, the Ugandan Cabinet approved plans to expand the NDA into the NFDA by adding food, food additives, food supplements, cosmetics, and commercial animal feeds to the items under the organization's supervision. The relevant laws transforming NDA into NFDA are before the Ugandan Parliament for promulgation.[5]
The headquarters of the NDA was located at 46-48 Lumumba Avenue but has moved to Rummee Towers, in Kampala Central Division, on Nakasero Hill, in the central business district of Kampala, the capital and largest city of Uganda. The coordinates of the head office are 0°19'36.0"N, 32°34'32.0"E (Latitude:0.326667; Longitude:32.575556).
NDA maintains regional offices at the following locations:[6]
The agency works in collaboration with the Uganda Ministry of Health and the Uganda Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries.[7]
As far back as 2010, elements of the Ugandan government recognized the need to regulate food manufacture, importation, labeling, distribution, and marketing to reduce food and water-borne diseases in the country as well as to ensure food safety. Efforts to assign the regulatory function to the then existing NDA began then.[8] [9]
However, the regulation of food manufacture still remains a core function of the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS).
The agency is governed by a 17-person member board, which serves for a four-year renewable term. Its members include the following individuals, effective January 2017:[7] [10]