Author: Emmanuel Oyelayo
Antibiotics have saved millions of lives since their discovery, but today, these life-saving drugs are under threat [1]. When you buy antibiotics from a local pharmacy or patent medicine store, how do you know what you’re getting is genuine? How do you know it hasn’t expired or been tampered with? For many Nigerians, these questions have no easy answers, until now.
At Ducit Blue Solutions, we believe that technology has a vital role to play in transforming health outcomes across Nigeria and beyond. This month, we’re spotlighting a remarkable digital health innovation that is doing exactly that; putting the power of drug verification directly into hands of everyday Nigerians.
On March 12, 2026, a groundbreaking digital health initiative called Com-WATCH (Community Access to Effective Antibiotics Initiative) was officially launched in Abuja. This innovative mobile application is designed to do something remarkable by putting the power to verify antibiotics directly into the hands of ordinary citizens, community pharmacists, and even farmers [2].
The Problem: A Silent Crisis in Our Communities
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when microorganisms stop responding to the medicines designed to kill them. When this happens, common infections that were once easily treated can become deadly [3]. The numbers are staggering, with experts projecting that antimicrobial resistance could cause up to 39 million deaths worldwide over the next 25 years, with low- and middle-income countries like Nigeria bearing the heaviest burden [4].
But what’s driving this crisis? According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), a major part of the problem lies outside hospital walls. Dr. Jide Idris, Director-General of NCDC, recently highlighted a critical gap: a large proportion of antibiotics in Nigeria are obtained outside formal healthcare facilities, through community pharmacies, patent medicine vendors, and even agro-vet stores that sell drugs for animal use [5].
“These critical access points are often not fully integrated into our national surveillance systems,” Dr. Idris explained during the Com-WATCH launch [5]. This means when a mother buys antibiotics for her sick child at a local vendor, there’s no system to track whether those drugs are authentic or even appropriate for the condition being treated.
This gap has serious consequences. Substandard and falsified antibiotics (drugs that either contain the wrong ingredients or have expired) fail to treat infections and actively contribute to antimicrobial resistance by exposing bacteria to sub-lethal doses of antibiotics, allowing them to develop resistance mechanisms [6].
The Solution: Com-WATCH Comes to Life
Recognizing this urgent problem, an international competition called the Trinity Challenge issued a call for innovative solutions to improve community access to effective antibiotics [7]. Over 200 applications poured in from more than 50 countries. When the winners were announced in 2025, Nigeria’s Com-WATCH emerged as one of two grand prize recipients, receiving £500,000 to bring its vision to life [4].
The initiative is a collaboration between Jhpiego, eHealth Africa, and key Nigerian regulatory bodies including the NCDC and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) [2].
So how does it work? The Com-WATCH mobile application, now available on the Google Play Store, allows users to verify the authenticity of antibiotics before using them. Here’s what you can do with it:
- Verify Your Medicines: Simply upload a picture of the antibiotic packaging through the app. The system cross-references it against the NAFDAC Greenbook (the official database of registered medicines in Nigeria) and confirms whether the product is verified and safe to use [2].
- Get Real-Time Alerts: The app can notify users when drugs are approaching their expiry dates and flag potential quality concerns [6].
- Report and Contribute: Community members can report where they’re accessing antibiotics and what they’re using. This data helps regulators like NAFDAC and NCDC identify emerging problems and take informed regulatory action [2].
- Accessible to All: The app is available on Android devices, but recognizing that not everyone has a smartphone, the platform also works offline through USSD codes (meaning anyone with a basic mobile phone can access the service) [2].
Why This Matters for You
Dr. Adetiloye Oniyire, Country Director of Jhpiego, put it plainly during the launch: “You can build strong health systems and have excellent infrastructure, but when the medicine given to patients is defective, the job is practically zero because the patient will not get well” [2].
Com-WATCH addresses this head-on. It serves multiple groups:
For Patients and Families: Before you or your child takes any antibiotic, you can verify it’s genuine. This simple step could mean the difference between recovery and treatment failure.
For Patent Medicine Vendors and Pharmacies: You can manage your stock more effectively, receive alerts about expiring products, and build trust with your customers by verifying your medicines through the app [6].
For Farmers: Antibiotic misuse in livestock and aquaculture is a major contributor to antimicrobial resistance. Farmers who use the app to verify veterinary antibiotics are protecting both their animals and the broader community [2].
For Regulators: NAFDAC and NCDC gain access to critical data that helps them identify where substandard drugs are circulating, enabling more targeted enforcement actions [5].
What’s Next?
The Com-WATCH initiative is currently being piloted in six states: Kano, Gombe, Ekiti, Ebonyi, Akwa Ibom, and the Federal Capital Territory, with plans for nationwide expansion [5].
As more Nigerians download and use the app, the system becomes more powerful. Every verification, every report, every piece of data contributes to a clearer picture of how antibiotics are being accessed and used across the country. This evidence will help shape national policies and guide interventions which ultimately preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for future generations [6].
How to Get Involved
The Com-WATCH app is available for download on the Google Play is available for download on the Google Play Store. Simply search for “Com-WATCH” and install the app on your Android device. If you don’t have a smartphone, you can access the service via USSD (ask your local patent medicine vendor or health worker for details).
When you download the app, you’re protecting yourself and your family alongside, a community of Nigerians contributing to the fight against antimicrobial resistance. As Yemisi Ogundare, Project Director of Com-WATCH, noted: “Our solution gives power back to the community. It allows community members to contribute data that helps public health decision-making, allowing us to reduce the issues of antimicrobial resistance and improve the health of vulnerable community members” [4].
Ducit Blue Solutions is committed to tracking innovations like Com-WATCH that sit at the intersection of technology and public good.
References
- Prabhu, S. (2025, September 15). How misuse of antibiotics is fuelling a global crisis. Healthcare Radius. https://www.healthcareradius.in/features/wellness/antibiotics-crisis
- Atabo, A., & Abujah, R. (2026, March 13). Stakeholders inaugurate platform to tackle antimicrobial resistance in Nigeria. News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). https://nannews.ng/stakeholders-inaugurate-platform-to-tackle-antimicrobial-resistance-in-nigeria/
- Mallum, M. (2025, August 25). Nigeria achieves milestone in antimicrobial resistance battle. Voice of Nigeria. https://von.gov.ng/nigeria-achieves-milestone-in-antimicrobial-resistance-battle/
- EP News Bureau. (2025, October 6). Trinity Challenge awards £1 million to projects tackling antibiotic resistance in Africa. Express Pharma. https://www.expresspharma.in/trinity-challenge-awards-1-million-to-projects-tackling-antibiotic-resistance-in-africa/
- Are, J. (2026, March 12). NCDC: Antibiotic use outside hospitals creating gap in detecting misuse, false medicines. TheCable. https://www.thecable.ng/ncdc-antibiotic-use-outside-hospitals-creating-gap-in-detecting-misuse-false-medicines/
- Ihejirika, P. I. (2026, March 13). One Health initiative launches app to combat antibiotic resistance. Leadership News. https://leadership.ng/one-health-initiative-launches-app-to-combat-antibiotic-resistance/
- The Trinity Challenge. (n.d.). The Trinity Challenge on community access to effective antibiotics. https://thetrinitychallenge.org/the-trinity-challenge-on-community-access-to-effective-antibiotics/
