Nigeria’s low life expectancy: Urgent action needed

The recent report by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, which places Nigeria’s life expectancy at 54.6 years, calls for sober reflection and urgent, holistic action. The 2024 State of the Nation Health Report highlights the grim reality that being a Nigerian today is marked by significant health and socioeconomic challenges. While there has […]

The recent report by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, which places Nigeria’s life expectancy at 54.6 years, calls for sober reflection and urgent, holistic action. The 2024 State of the Nation Health Report highlights the grim reality that being a Nigerian today is marked by significant health and socioeconomic challenges. While there has been a slight improvement from previous years, Nigeria remains at the bottom of the global ranking, with the lowest life expectancy among the 237 countries surveyed.

Alarmingly, Nigeria’s life expectancy is worse than that of war-torn countries such as South Sudan (57.7 years), Somalia (58.9 years), and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (62.07 years). This reflects years of leadership failure and policies that have done little to improve the welfare of the masses.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines life expectancy as “the average number of years that a newborn could expect to live if they were to pass through life exposed to the sex- and age-specific death rates prevailing at the time of their birth.”

According to the report, life expectancy for women in Nigeria is 54.9 years, while for men, it is 54.3 years. This falls far behind the global average of 73.3 years, where women are expected to live up to 76 years and men 70.7 years.

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One of the leading causes of low life expectancy in Nigeria is the prevalence of communicable diseases such as malaria, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis, which contribute significantly to the country’s disease burden. It is unfortunate that many Nigerians can no longer afford to treat common illnesses like malaria, which, when left untreated, leads to severe health complications.

Beyond the burden of disease, systemic economic hardship has played a crucial role in worsening the situation. The rapid decline in purchasing power over the years has made it difficult for many Nigerians to access basic necessities, including healthcare. When people struggle to afford food, medicine and shelter, a low life expectancy becomes an inevitable outcome.

The World Poverty Clock reported in 2024 that approximately 70.8 million Nigerians out of an estimated population of 225.7 million were living in extreme poverty. The previous year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) classified 133 million Nigerians as multidimensionally poor, while the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) estimated that 24.8 million people, or one in every eight Nigerians, experienced acute hunger.

It is particularly troubling that, despite these figures, Nigeria is not classified among the 10 poorest countries in the world. This raises a critical question: Why does Nigeria’s life expectancy remain abysmally low despite its wealth and resources?

At Daily Trust, we reiterate the urgent need for sustained investment in healthcare and public health initiatives at all levels of government. The responsibility must not fall solely on the federal government. State and local governments must take an active role in ensuring that healthcare services are accessible and functional.

Accordingly, we suggest that state and local governments urgently rehabilitate neglected primary healthcare centres (PHCs). These facilities are the first point of access for millions of Nigerians, yet they remain poorly equipped and understaffed. Investing in PHCs will reduce the burden on secondary and tertiary hospitals and improve early disease detection and management.

Similarly, the government must introduce and implement policies that make healthcare affordable and accessible. While the federal and some state governments have taken this initiative, expanding the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and state-owned schemes to ensure that informal sector workers and low-income families benefit from subsidised healthcare services should be a priority.

Malnutrition is a silent killer in Nigeria, contributing significantly to high mortality rates, especially among children. With the cost of several nutritious food items already hitting the roof, government intervention in food security is critical. Policies should encourage local food production, subsidise essential food items, and ensure the effectiveness of school feeding programmes to improve child nutrition. We call for the reintroduction of the “One Egg a Day” initiative, among other things.

We also reiterate that the government must ensure strict regulation of hospitals and pharmaceutical companies to prevent the exploitation of patients. The cost of medicines and medical services should be monitored to prevent price gouging, ensuring that ordinary Nigerians can afford life-saving treatments. Similarly, government must sustain efforts to rid the country of substandard and fake pharmaceutical products.

Beyond interventions in the healthcare sector, the government should also implement economic policies that support the poor. Rising inflation and unemployment have made life unbearable for millions of Nigerians. While the government boasts of GDP growth, economic policies must be tailored to reduce poverty, create job opportunities, and ensure that wealth is distributed more equitably. Investing in agriculture, small businesses, and vocational training will help lift people out of poverty, not palliatives.

It is our firm belief that Nigeria’s low life expectancy is not caused by natural disasters or unavoidable tragedies. Instead, it is the result of decades of poor leadership, ineffective policies, and failure to prioritise citizens’ well-being. If the root causes are man-made, then the solutions are within reach. What Nigeria needs is effective and purposeful leadership that prioritises health and economic policies that benefit the masses.

The time for action is now.