One-third of Nigerians have non-communicable disease -Experts

From Fred Ezeh, Abuja 

The Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) Advocacy Working Group (AWG), has demanded urgent government action to effectively deliver the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) promises, particularly, the ones that concern NCD patients in Nigeria, thus pushing for urgent release of the 2025 NCDs budget. The AWG stated that NCDs, notably hypertension, diabetes, cancers, and chronic respiratory illnesses, pose some of the greatest threats to Nigeria’s human capital and economic prosperity.

The AWG further stated that NCDs patients in Nigeria bear one of the largest shares of public health burdens, and disclosed that one-third of Nigerian adults have one or more NCDs and less than 20 per cent have access to diagnosis and treatment.

At a press conference in Abuja, the AWG said the rise in NCDs align with targets set in the 2019-2025 multi-sectoral plan to increase diagnosis and treatment coverage to 80 per cent and reduce mortality by 25 per cent. Yet, only six per cent of the already insufficient health budget is allocated to NCDs.

“As we have now learned, nearly none of the budgeted activities in the 2025 budget has been executed. These activities range from erecting new cancer facilities, eye centres, medical outreaches for hypertension and diabetes screening and treatment as well as health workers training. This development defies the spirit of UHC, which is built on our collective understanding of social impacts on health.

“For many Nigerians, lack of adequate health education, household income, lack of access for early screening and high cost of medicines exacerbated by economic policies have combined impact on the incidence and management of chronic diseases. This vulnerability is what Nigeria and the rest of the world have agreed to protect against through the UHC Agenda.”

Ijeoma Joseph of the Regima Community Care Foundation, who represented the patient community, said the government must convert its commitments into real, life-saving interventions, insisting that NCDs pose one of the greatest threats to Nigeria’s human capital.