Health
Lagos Doctors Demand Better Healthcare
By Adedapo Adesanya
The chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr Saheed Babajide, has called for improvements in the Nigerian health sector.
Speaking on the state of healthcare in the country, he said the sector was still plagued by deep-rooted challenges despite repeated reforms and huge investments.
In his comment on the 65th Independence Anniversary of Nigeria on October 1, the medical practitioner said the system remains fragile and incapable of delivering equitable and quality services to Nigerians.
He noted that one of the greatest threats is the persistent brain drain, popularly referred to as the Japa syndrome, where doctors and other medical professionals leave in droves for better opportunities abroad.
Dr Babajide stressed that reversing the trend will require competitive remuneration, tax-free call duty allowances, strong welfare packages, continuous training and research support, infrastructure upgrades, and a more enabling work environment.
He also called for adequate funding, which he described healthcare financing as “grossly inadequate,” revealing that both federal and state governments currently dedicate only about 4–6 per cent of their annual budgets to health, far below the 15 per cent benchmark agreed upon by African leaders under the 2001 Abuja Declaration.
He also faulted the diversion of scarce resources into “elephant projects” that yield little or no benefit to the people.
The NMA chairman lamented the neglect of primary healthcare facilities, warning that without a functional base system, secondary and tertiary institutions will remain underdeveloped.
According to him, poor infrastructure, obsolete equipment, and insufficient facilities make the sector unattractive for practitioners and unsafe for patients.
He expressed concern that Nigeria is ill-prepared for public health emergencies, epidemics, or disasters, while medical tourism continues to drain national resources because of a lack of political will to transform domestic healthcare delivery.
Dr Babajide recommended that there was need to upgrade and standardise primary, secondary, and tertiary health systems, adding that there should be adequate healthcare financing with prudent management, transparent procurement, and regular auditing.
The body also sought career progression paths for healthcare workers and the appointment of competent professionals as institutional leaders.
Others include the establishment of Infectious Disease Hospitals, IDHs, and trauma centres in every state and the Federal Capital Territory; development of multi-specialty hospitals for paediatrics, renal care, cardiac treatment, oncology, and neurosurgery; and strengthening the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to expand coverage and improve service delivery.
Dr Babajide maintained that unless urgent reforms are implemented, Nigeria risks further deterioration of its healthcare system, with dire consequences for both citizens and the economy.
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu has transmitted 24 bills for consideration of the Senate which seeks to reduce the country’s over-bloated board memberships in the health sector.
The bills were conveyed alongside a letter addressed to President of Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and read at plenary on Tuesday, in line with Section 58(2) of the 1999 Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria.
President Tinubu said the proposed legislations followed a comprehensive review of existing health sector laws by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.
He said the review, approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), was in collaboration with the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate.
According to the President, the bills aims at streamlining governance structures across health institutions by reducing over-bloated board memberships.
This, he said, would improve efficiency, effectiveness, and service delivery within the sector.
According to him, the proposed legislations cover a wide range of health institutions and regulatory bodies, including tertiary and teaching hospitals, specialty hospitals, professional councils, and regulatory agencies.
He said the bills transmitted to the Senate includes the National Hospital for Women and Children, Abuja, Federal Medical Centres, National Specialty Hospitals Management Board; Orthopaedic Hospitals Management Board
Others are the National Eye Centre, National Ear Care Centre, Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria; Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the National Blood Service Agency, among others.
The President also listed additional legislative proposals such as the Records Officers Registration and Digital Health Bill 2025 and the Federal College of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Bill 2025.
President Tinubu expressed confidence that the Senate would give the bills careful and judicious consideration in the interest of strengthening Nigeria’s health sector.
After the letter accompanying the bills was read, Senate President referred all the 24 bills to the Senate Committee on Rules and Business for further legislative action.
By Adedapo Adesanya
A new pan-African mental wellness campaign, the Africa Wellness Voices Initiative (AWVI), is set to launch this February, bringing together voices from across Africa to promote mental wellbeing, reduce stigma, and encourage supportive conversations around mental health.
Led by SereniMind, a mental health and wellness organization, AWVI will spotlight different African countries daily throughout February by sharing short wellness statements from individuals, organizations, youth leaders, and institutions.
Each daily feature will highlight local perspectives on mental wellbeing while reinforcing a shared continental message: mental health matters, it said in a statement shared with Business Post.
Mental health remains a critical but under-addressed issue across Africa. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), depression affects more than 66 million people in the African Region, while mental health services remain limited in many countries. Young people are particularly affected, facing stigma, lack of awareness, and barriers to accessing support.
AWVI said it aims to address these gaps through a unified, prevention-focused awareness campaign that leverages digital platforms to reach communities across borders. In addition to featured voices, members of the public are encouraged to participate by sharing short wellness videos on social media, fostering grassroots engagement and peer-to-peer support.
Speaking on the initiative, Mr Oyenuga Ridwan, Founder of SereniMind, said: “Across Africa, too many people suffer in silence when it comes to mental health. Africa Wellness Voices Initiative is about unity, bringing together Africans from different countries, ages, and backgrounds to normalize conversations around wellbeing and remind people that seeking support is a strength, not a weakness.”
The February campaign is expected to reach 15–25 African countries, feature 60–120 individuals and organizations, and generate over 500,000 digital impressions across platforms including Instagram, LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok. The organizers hope to scale the initiative in future editions to include all 54 African countries.
AWVI says it aligns with broader continental and global priorities on health, youth empowerment, and wellbeing, contributing to conversations around preventive mental health, community resilience, and inclusive development.
Through technology, partnerships, and community engagement, SereniMind works to promote wellbeing and reduce stigma around mental health.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has said Africa was no longer in the grip of a public health emergency over mpox, but warned that it remains endemic in several settings.
The announcement by the Director General of the Africa CDC, Dr Jean Kaseya, on Saturday, comes after the World Health Organisation (WHO) in September said mpox was no longer a global health emergency.
The organisation had declared its worldwide public health emergency over the viral infection — previously known as Monkeypox, and related to smallpox — in August 2024, after a two-pronged mpox epidemic broke out, primarily in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Dr Kaseya said Africa was lifting its regional emergency status for the illness because of boosted detection, therapy, and the roll-out of more than five million mpox vaccines in 16 countries since 2024.
The response contributed to confirmed cases dropping by 60 percent between early 2025 and late 2025, and the number of deaths among those infected dropping from 2.6 per cent to 0.6 per cent, he said in a statement.
The lifting of the regional public health emergency status “does not mark the end of mpox in Africa,” he stated.
“Rather, it signals a transition from emergency response to a sustained, country-led pathway toward elimination.
“Mpox remains endemic in several settings, and continued vigilance, targeted investment, and innovation will be essential to consolidate gains and prevent resurgence,” the CDC chief added.
According to the WHO, 78 per cent of mpox cases were detected in Africa, with the DRC, Guinea, and Madagascar most affected.
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