Africa bears roughly a quarter of the global disease burden yet imports nearly 97 percent of its pharmaceutical commodities, a vulnerability starkly exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. This severe import dependence leaves Nigeria’s medicine security inherently weak. To address this, The Alternative Bank (AltBank) is stepping in as the financing answer, deploying asset-backed, risk-sharing capital to fund local pharmaceutical production, distribution, and supply chains. As part of this effort, the Bank has extended an invitation to Industrial Pharmacists across Nigeria to partner on solutions.
Speaking in a recent interview with the Association of Industrial Pharmacists of Nigeria (NAIP) for the maiden edition of its Pharma Industry Digest, Dr. Jekwu Ozoemene, Group Executive at The Alternative Bank, underscored the urgency of localising production.
“Pharma and medicine security and sovereignty is essential to Nigeria’s survival,” Dr. Ozoemene stated. “We are positioned to partner with all stakeholders to make this a reality.”
As a fully licensed non-interest bank, AltBank deploys a unique model of patient capital. By utilising asset-backed, risk-sharing financing structures, the Bank aligns repayment schedules with a business’ actual cash flow rather than imposing rigid loan stipulations. This thoughtfully structured financing is designed to grow sustainably alongside the businesses it funds.
To support this vision, the Bank has rolled out targeted healthcare-focused products nationwide. These solutions include stock, vendor, and distributor financing, alongside supply chain financing and revolving drug funds. The Bank is also facilitating broader systemic improvements through health insurance schemes, health management information systems, capital market access, and Banking-as-a-Service platforms. These solutions are currently being scaled through strategic partnerships with State Health Boards to ensure quality drugs reach Nigerians at lower costs.
Beyond immediate healthcare outcomes, this localised approach addresses broader macroeconomic challenges facing the nation. By substituting pharmaceutical imports with domestic production, the initiative aims to significantly reduce the sector’s reliance on foreign exchange, thereby easing pressure on the local currency. Furthermore, catalysing industrial-scale pharmaceutical manufacturing will stimulate job creation across the entire value chain, from laboratory research and quality control to logistics and retail distribution, fostering robust economic resilience.
Dr. Ozoemene signaled the Bank’s intent to look far beyond standard trade financing to build true industrial capacity. “We don’t only want to finance the company that imports the most products,” he explained. “We also want to finance the industrial pharmacist establishing a WHO-compliant manufacturing plant to produce essential medicines locally. We want to back the researcher working on new formulations for malaria treatments or hypertension drugs designed specifically for the Nigerian demographic.”
This approach to healthcare inherently aligns with the core principles of non-interest banking, which prioritises investments that generate positive social impact alongside sustainable financial returns. By channeling capital into projects that directly preserve human life and enhance public well-being, the Bank is reinforcing its mandate to operate as an ethical financial catalyst, ensuring that funding is purposefully directed toward tangible, life-saving infrastructure rather than speculative ventures.
