As the rains pour in 2025, stay alert!

Seasonal changes are part of nature’s rhythm and vital to our survival. The rainy season supports farming and feeds us, sustaining both people and the environment. But while rain brings life, it can also bring disease. With every opportunity comes a risk—let’s stay prepared.”  Early preparation for the rainy season is key to maximising harvests, […]

Seasonal changes are part of nature’s rhythm and vital to our survival. The rainy season supports farming and feeds us, sustaining both people and the environment. But while rain brings life, it can also bring disease. With every opportunity comes a risk—let’s stay prepared.”

 Early preparation for the rainy season is key to maximising harvests, which can contribute to both household and national food security. However, this goal remains difficult to achieve, especially in the face of current economic challenges and the fact that most of our farmers still rely on subsistence methods, with only a few practicing mechanised agriculture. While the rainy season holds great potential for improving food availability, it rarely guarantees complete food security. Still, as part of nature’s cycle, it offers varying degrees of benefit across different levels of society — though the process remains complex and often unpredictable.

Malaria is transmitted through the bite of an infected female mosquito, which thrives during the rainy season—especially in areas with poor sanitation, inadequate waste drainage, and stagnant water. These conditions create ideal breeding grounds, leading to an increase in mosquito populations and, consequently, a surge in malaria cases. This is particularly concerning for pregnant women and children, who are at greater risk of severe malaria complications that can affect the brain or unborn baby, sometimes resulting in death or long-term health issues.

In northern Nigeria, a seasonal spike in malaria cases typically occurs between August and October. Despite this predictable pattern, challenges persist with misdiagnosis and improper treatment, particularly from untrained providers such as patent medicine vendors and under-resourced health facilities. A widespread but dangerous habit is the treatment of suspected “malaria-typhoid syndrome” without proper laboratory testing, which contributes to growing resistance to both antimalarial and antibiotic medications.

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It’s important for the public to understand that although malaria and typhoid can occur at the same time, accurate diagnosis is crucial for proper treatment. The Widal test, which is frequently used to detect typhoid, is unreliable and not advised as a standard diagnostic method. On the other hand, malaria should be confirmed using Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) or microscopy—both of which are accurate and approved by health experts.

Anyone diagnosed with typhoid should understand that the infection is often linked to poor hygiene practices—such as not washing hands after using the toilet, consuming improperly handled food, or drinking contaminated water. During the rainy season, it is common for leaky pipes in municipal water systems to allow the entry of harmful microorganisms. This can lead to outbreaks of waterborne diseases like typhoid and cholera—outbreaks that have become all too familiar in parts of Nigeria, especially the northern region, claiming lives and straining health resources over the past five years.

Although open defecation is officially banned in Nigeria, it remains widespread and contributes significantly to the spread of disease during the rainy season. Many wells, which serve as a primary water source in rural areas, are not constructed to meet sanitary standards and are easily contaminated by human waste, agricultural runoff, and industrial discharge. This results in increased risk of cholera, typhoid, and other waterborne illnesses.

To prevent such outbreaks, there is an urgent need to prioritise food and water safety. This includes ensuring a clean water supply, regular inspection and maintenance of municipal water pipelines, and transparent communication from water authorities whenever contamination is suspected. Environmental health officers should be legally empowered to enforce sanitation laws—ensuring vendors sell only safe food, that open defecation is eliminated, waste is properly managed, and only sanitary wells are constructed and maintained, especially in rural communities.

To prevent malaria during the rainy season, it’s essential not only to control mosquito breeding by eliminating stagnant water and ensuring proper waste disposal, but also to take extra protective measures—especially for vulnerable groups like pregnant women and children. These measures include installing window and door screens, wearing long-sleeved clothing in the evenings, using insecticides and insecticide-treated mosquito nets, and adhering to recommended medications such as seasonal malaria chemoprevention for children and intermittent preventive treatment for pregnant women. Community support structures must be fully engaged in promoting and sustaining these efforts.

Flooding is another common and destructive event during the rainy season. While early warnings are often issued by government agencies, both local authorities and communities frequently remain unprepared, often due to a reactive rather than proactive approach. Flooding brings numerous dangers, including outbreaks of deadly diseases like cholera, destruction of property, drowning, and building collapse. Global best practices emphasise the need to identify flood-prone areas, implement risk reduction and mitigation strategies, and ensure robust preparedness and response mechanisms. To minimise the impact of flooding, all relevant stakeholders must follow existing guidelines, which outline steps for both prevention and effective emergency response. Proper planning, early action, and coordinated support are critical to saving lives and reducing damage.

The government, through the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), continues to make significant and lasting strides in preventing and managing disease outbreaks and other public health emergencies. These efforts are further strengthened by active collaboration with key stakeholders nationwide. One major step forward is the call for every state to establish its own public health response body, modeled after the Kano State Centre for Disease Control. This approach improves coordination, streamlines the implementation of national health guidelines, and enables faster identification and response to health threats.

However, the success of these initiatives depends not only on government action but also on strong community involvement. Individuals and communities must take responsibility and actively support these public health efforts. Everyone has a role to play, and the sooner we recognize and embrace that role, the more effective our collective response will be. After all, the government serves the people—and its efforts will only yield results if we all contribute our part.

 

Dr Usman is a Consultant Public Health Physician, Rasheed Shekoni Federal University Teaching Hospital, Dutse [email protected]