Enforcement Directorate

The Enforcement Directorate is a multi-disciplinary arm of the Technical Operations Division mandated to ensure compliance with the laws governing the regulation of FDA regulated products through investigation into malpractices and crimes, market surveillance and education. The Directorate relies on undercover personnel, confidential informants and sources as well as cooperating individuals to execute its mandate. The mandate of the Directorate is enshrined in the following Sections of the Part 7 of the Public Health Act, 2012, Act 851:

• Section 101 Food for sale to meet prescribed standards
• Section 103 Deception of consumers
• Section 105 Prohibition against sale of poor-quality food
• Section 114 Prohibited advertisements
• Section 119 Cancellation or suspension of registration
• Section 123 Counterfeit drugs, herbal medicinal products, medical devices and household chemical substances

Scope of Mandate

The Directorate ensures that FDA regulated products imported into the country or manufactured locally and distributed for sale and consumption by the public conforms with applicable standards and are safe, efficacious and of the right quality for use.

Operational Departments

The Directorate has three operational departments. They are:

1. Operations Department
2. Intelligence Department
3. Investigations Department

 Operations Department

The Department is responsible for the initiation and monitoring of the recall of products which are found not to have met regulatory requirements or are non-compliant with set standards. The Department inspects warehouse for compliance to storage practices and ensures that the distribution system is rid of non-compliant products. The FDA’s Flagship Programme, Take Back of Unwanted Medicines (TBUM) is implemented by the Department. This Programme is aimed at ensuring that medicines that are not used by consumers are properly disposed of in environmentally friendly ways to safeguard public health.

Intelligence Department

The Department ensures that counterfeit/ falsified and unwholesome regulated products are prevented from entering the market or removed from the market to protect public health and safety. The Department achieves through this through sampling and testing, market surveillance, product quality monitoring and product verification. The Department liaises with other state institutions such as the Police Service, Narcotics Control Commission, Economic and Organised Crime Office in overt and covert intelligence gathering to apprehend offenders engaged in the manufacture, sale and distribution of non- compliant FDA regulated products.

Investigations Department

This Department investigates into all issues of non-compliance of regulated products. The Department works with Ghana Police officers seconded to the FDA to delve into investigation for conduct of non- compliances. The Department also liaises with the Judiciary to secure prosecutions against offenders. Additionally, the Department monitors advertisements of FDA regulated products to ensure compliance. The Department also conducts raids and swoop in markets for non-compliant products.