First lady declares tuberculosis a national emergency
The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu says TB is a national emergency that needs to be urgently addressed in the country. She stated this Monday in Abuja during a community outreach in Sauka to mark this year’s World Tuberculosis Day. It was organized by Stop TB Partnership Nigeria, in collaboration with the National TB and […]
The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu says TB is a national emergency that needs to be urgently addressed in the country.
She stated this Monday in Abuja during a community outreach in Sauka to mark this year’s World Tuberculosis Day.
It was organized by Stop TB Partnership Nigeria, in collaboration with the National TB and Leprosy Control Programme (NTBLCP) of the Federal Ministry of Health, and other partners.
She said, ” Beyond being a disease; TB is a national emergency that needs to be addressed urgently, because it is preventable and curable.”
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The theme of this year’s commemoration is “Yes! We Can End TB: Commit, Invest, and Deliver” with the local slogan “We Fit Do Am.”
The first lady said statistics from the World Health Organization’s ( WHO) 2024 Global TB Report are alarming, adding that in Nigeria, one person dies of TB every seven minutes.
She said, “This means that, in the short time we will spend at this event, many more lives will be lost, if we do not act swiftly and decisively.”
She said despite TB being preventable and curable, Nigeria remains one of the top eight countries with the highest burden of the disease worldwide.
She also said it is unacceptable that so many people still suffer from the disease in silence due to stigma, lack of awareness, and the ignorance of not visiting a healthcare facility on time.
While saying that government cannot do it alone., she said Ending TB by 2030 is a collective responsibility.
“We need traditional and religious leaders, legislators, the youth, healthcare workers, private sector organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), community based organizations (CBOs) and international partners to join forces in this fight,” she stated.
She pledged an additional sum of 1 billion naira from the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) towards the fight against tuberculosis in Nigeria. She had earlier donated N1 billion naira in 2024.
Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, said Nigeria, ranks first in Africa and sixth globally among high-burden TB countries.
He said in 2023, an estimated 499,000 Nigerians developed TB, primarily affecting the productive age group (25–44 years), and lead to economic hardships.
He said that despite challenges, Nigeria has made significant progress in TB eradication through WHO-recommended strategies.
He highlighted that in 2024, the country recorded its highest-ever TB notification of over 400,000 cases, with a 79% detection rate.
He added that in line with the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative – the strategic blueprint for the health sector – and the TB National Strategic Plan (NSP) 2021 – 2026, government has intensified efforts to further strengthen TB screening, diagnosis, treatment and preventive services across the country.
The WHO representative in Nigeria, Dr Walter Kazadi Mulombo said there is an existential threat of losing the huge gains the world has made against TB over the past 20 years due to funding cuts which have started to disrupt access to services for prevention, screening, and treatment for people with TB.
He said in a space of five years, Nigeria has scaled up many new innovations and interventions that have resulted in the huge numbers of TB cases notified, adding that any disruptions to TB services therefore will have fatal consequences for the thousands of people affected by the disease in Nigeria.
Acting Board Chair, Stop TB Partnership Nigeria, Dr Queen Ogbuji-Ladipo, said the World TB day is commemorated on 24 March every year to raise awareness about tuberculosis , how it spreads and how it can be prevented, treated and cured.