Echotitbits – Nigeria News

Tag: public health

  • Lagos Experts Warn of Erratic Weather and Heatwaves in 2026

    Lagos Experts Warn of Erratic Weather and Heatwaves in 2026

    In an update published by The Punch, environmental scientists and health experts have warned that Nigeria is entering a period of extreme climate unpredictability. Unusual rainfall patterns observed in Lagos and Ogun states during January and early February are being cited as clear indicators that traditional seasonal cycles have been disrupted by global warming.

    Mr. Ahoton James, Director of Environmental Service at the Lagos State Primary Healthcare Board, noted that the absence of a traditional harmattan season in late 2025 and early 2026 is a significant red flag. The experts predict that the country may face intense heatwaves and unseasonable flooding, which could severely impact food security and public health.

    The changing climate is already affecting agricultural planning, as farmers who rely on predictable rain cycles are finding it difficult to time their planting. This volatility is expected to persist throughout the year, necessitating a shift in national disaster management strategies.

    Validating reports from Vanguard and Daily Trust emphasize these concerns, with Vanguard quoting a meteorologist who said, “We are seeing the 2026 weather calendar being rewritten by carbon footprints,” while Daily Trust noted that “Northern states must prepare for record-breaking temperatures this summer.”

    Echotitbits take: The failure of the harmattan and early rains in the south are not just anomalies; they are economic risks. Expect a spike in cooling costs and potential volatility in food prices if the heatwaves affect the early planting season.

    Source: The Cable – https://www.thecable.ng/heat-like-hell-fire-strange-weather-angry-water-what-nigerians-call-climate-change/, February 8, 2026

    Photo credit: The Cable

  • Health Experts Warn Against Traditional Snakebite Treatments Following Surge in Cases

    Health Experts Warn Against Traditional Snakebite Treatments Following Surge in Cases

    According to The Punch reporting on February 4, 2026, medical experts from the Toxinological Society of Nigeria have warned that traditional methods of treating snakebites, such as tying the affected limb, are significantly reducing victims’ chances of survival. Data released by the society indicates that Nigeria records approximately 43,000 snakebite cases annually, resulting in nearly 1,900 deaths due to improper first aid and lack of anti-venom.

    The experts are calling on the Federal Government to provide emergency funding for snakebite control, particularly in rural farming communities where the risk is highest. They noted that many Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) lack the necessary anti-snake venom, forcing victims to rely on herbalists or unproven traditional remedies that often lead to complications like gangrene.

    Additional reporting from Channels TV and Vanguard validates the call for government intervention. Channels TV highlights a recent tragedy involving a singer whose death was linked to a lack of immediate medical antidotes, quoting a doctor who said, “PHCs should have anti-snake venom as a basic medicine, not a luxury.” Vanguard reports on efforts in the Federal Capital Territory (FCTA) to curb snakebite deaths, with an official stating, “We are launching a prevention awareness campaign across all area councils.”

    Echotitbits take: Snakebites remain a neglected tropical disease that affects the most vulnerable—rural farmers. The lack of anti-venom in PHCs is a systemic failure that directly impacts food security, as farmers fear going to their fields. This is an area where state and federal governments need to collaborate on local production of anti-venom to reduce costs and save lives.

    Source: The Punch – https://punchng.com/tying-legs-after-snakebite-reduces-victims-chances-of-survival-experts/, February 4, 2026

    Photo credit: The Punch

  • Health Experts Warn Against Growing Roadside Food Drying Culture

    Health Experts Warn Against Growing Roadside Food Drying Culture

    Daily Post reports that health professionals are warning against the practice of drying staple foods such as cassava, maize, and beans along major highways in Nigeria.

    Experts say roadside drying exposes food to contaminants including heavy metals from vehicle exhaust and dust-borne pathogens, with toxins settling directly on food as passing traffic raises dust clouds.

    Vanguard and The Guardian also echoed concerns, including links to gastrointestinal infections and broader food-safety risks tied to limited access to modern processing facilities.

    Echotitbits take: This is an infrastructure-and-public-health gap showing up in everyday food handling. Without affordable community dryers, solar kilns, and hygienic aggregation points, the practice will persist. A practical fix is local processing hubs near farming clusters, backed by microcredit and enforceable food-safety standards.

    Source: Daily Post – https://dailypost.ng/2026/01/30/dust-on-meal-tables-experts-reveal-hidden-dangers-of-nigerias-roadside-drying-culture/ 2026-01-30

    Photo Credit: Daily Post

  • Looming Healthcare Crisis: Nigeria Faces Deficit of 260,000 Doctors

    Looming Healthcare Crisis: Nigeria Faces Deficit of 260,000 Doctors

    New figures cited in reporting indicate Nigeria’s pool of licensed medical doctors has dropped to about 40,000, leaving an estimated shortfall of 260,000 doctors for a population exceeding 200 million.

    Drivers: The ongoing “Japa” migration of health workers remains a central factor, with experts warning that the current doctor-to-patient ratio is unsustainable and is worsening outcomes in public facilities.

    Impact: Rural communities are described as the hardest hit, with multiple local government areas reportedly lacking resident doctors.

    Echotitbits take: Without urgent intervention—competitive pay, safer working conditions, and retention incentives—the system risks severe service breakdowns. Watch for policy moves around bonding, accelerated training pipelines, and emergency recruitment.

    Source: The Nation – https://thenationonlineng.net/what-high-profile-losses-reveal-about-nigerias-healthcare-crisis/ (January 25, 2026)

    The Nation 2026-01-25

    Photo Credit: The Nation

  • Merck Foundation and São Tomé First Lady align on healthcare capacity building and infertility stigma campaigns

    Merck Foundation and São Tomé First Lady align on healthcare capacity building and infertility stigma campaigns

    Merck Foundation and São Tomé First Lady align on healthcare capacity building and infertility stigma campaigns

    In a release distributed via APO Group and published on Africa Newsroom, Merck Foundation said its CEO and the First Lady of São Tomé & Príncipe discussed joint programmes to strengthen healthcare capacity and tackle infertility stigma.

    The conversation was framed around training, advocacy, and media engagement—using high-level convenings to keep reproductive health, maternal health, and systems strengthening on the policy radar.

    The real-world impact depends on implementation: scholarships delivered, training cohorts completed, and hospitals or institutions integrating the newly built capacity.

    Merck Foundation’s official announcement said the goal is to “strengthen healthcare” and expand training impact, while a republished report highlighted efforts to “break infertility stigma” through advocacy and community engagement.

    Echotitbits take:
    Stigma is often more damaging than the condition itself—because it delays care and drives misinformation. Watch for multilingual public campaigns, local clinician training, and integration into national reproductive health programming.

    Source: Zawya — January 2, 2026 — https://www.zawya.com/en/press-release/africa-press-releases/merck-foundation-chief-executive-officer-ceo-and-sao-tome-principe-first-lady-discussed-their-joint-programs-xc03fgus

    Zawya 2026-01-02

    Photo Credit: Zawya

  • NAFDAC Uncovers Alleged “Revalidation” Factory for Expired Drugs in Lagos

    NAFDAC Uncovers Alleged “Revalidation” Factory for Expired Drugs in Lagos

    Photo Credit: Vanguard
    2025-12-25 10:30:00

    In a raid report carried by Vanguard, NAFDAC and security agencies uncovered a large-scale operation in Ojo, Lagos allegedly involved in selling and “revalidating” fake, banned and expired pharmaceutical products, with arrests made on site.

    Investigators said some products had expiry dates wiped and relabelled—raising fears about treatment failures, drug resistance, and preventable deaths linked to adulterated medicines.

    Vanguard quoted a NAFDAC official in stark terms: “What we have found here is that there are people who are worse than Boko Haram,” linking the operation to deliberate harm.

    The same report also highlighted specific examples, including: “This Diazepam injection expired in 2024, yet it was being prepared for sale,” as authorities described how chemicals were allegedly used to erase and reprint expiry labels.

    Echotitbits take: Fake drugs are no longer just a “health” story—they’re a national security and economic story, because they erode trust in the medical system and can destabilise public health outcomes. Watch for follow-up prosecutions (not just raids), and whether regulators expand traceability, tamper-proof labelling, and market surveillance in major drug hubs.

    Source: Vanguard — December 2025 (https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/12/nafdac-uncovers-fake-expired-drug-factory-in-lagos-warns-of-national-security-threat/)

    Vanguard 2025-12-25

  • Japa Update: Nigerian Nurses on UK Register Cross 16,000

    Japa Update: Nigerian Nurses on UK Register Cross 16,000

    Photo Credit: The Punch
    2025-12-25 09:25:00

    Figures cited by The Punch show 16,156 Nigerian-trained nurses and midwives have been licensed to practise in the UK between 2017 and September 30, 2025, underlining the sustained health-worker outflow often described as “japa.” The report frames the movement as both opportunity-driven migration and a stress point for Nigeria’s health system.

    Beyond the headline number, the broader UK-side data shows shifting recruitment dynamics, including a slowdown in international joiners compared to prior periods—suggesting immigration rules, labour-market conditions, and social climate are affecting inflows.

    For Nigeria, the implications are double-edged: remittances and global exposure on one hand, but deepening staffing gaps and training-cost leakage on the other—especially for critical-care and specialist nursing areas.

    For validation, the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) reported that “the second and third largest sources of international recruitment are now Nigeria and Ghana,” while The Guardian (UK) cited NMC workforce data noting the number of overseas joiners “is collapsing,” as international inflows slowed in 2025.

    Echotitbits take: Nigeria needs a serious retention-and-return strategy—bonding alone won’t work if working conditions remain weak. Watch for policies around pay, safe staffing ratios, housing/transport support, and specialist training pathways that make staying competitive.

    Source: The Punch — December 25, 2025 (https://punchng.com/japa-nigerian-nurses-practising-in-uk-hit-over-16000/)

    The Punch 2025-12-25

  • Ogun suspends three environmental consultants after Ogijo lead pollution scrutiny

    Ogun suspends three environmental consultants after Ogijo lead pollution scrutiny

    Photo Credit: The Punch
    2025-12-20 13:30:00

    From Ogun State’s environmental briefings reported by Punch, the government has suspended three environmental consultancy firms over alleged negligence linked to pollution concerns around closed used lead-acid battery recycling operations in Ogijo.

    Officials said a process audit review identified accountability lapses in how compliance was handled, and the suspension is part of wider efforts to strengthen oversight.

    The case has heightened public health concern because lead exposure is particularly dangerous for children and can cause long-term developmental harm.

    Channels Television reported Ogun “has suspended three environmental consultancy firms,” while The Guardian said the state acted over “professional negligence and culpability.”

    Echotitbits take:
    This is a test of whether Nigeria will enforce environmental accountability beyond factory owners. Watch for remediation steps, community health screening updates, and whether regulators tighten standards across similar industries.

    Source: Punch — December 20, 2025 (https://punchng.com/ogun-suspends-env-consultancy-firms-over-pollution-allegations/)
    Punch 2025-12-20

  • Investigative report tracks Nigeria’s battery recycling crackdown after lead poisoning fears

    Investigative report tracks Nigeria’s battery recycling crackdown after lead poisoning fears

    Photo Credit: The Punch
    2025-12-18 07:45:00

    Writing in The Examination (in collaboration with The New York Times), reporters say Nigerian authorities have begun documenting environmental and health damage tied to used lead-acid battery recycling amid scrutiny of lead exposure risks.

    The investigation places the issue in a global supply chain context, where recycled lead can reach international markets, raising questions about enforcement, exports and environmental justice.

    It highlights severe health risks—especially for children—and argues that cleanup and remediation often lag behind industrial activity.

    Premium Times reported Ogun ordered shutdowns of several ULAB recycling facilities, while The Examination/NYT collaboration said Nigeria has “begun cataloging the health and environmental damage” tied to such factories.

    Echotitbits take:
    This is bigger than one community: it tests Nigeria’s capacity to regulate high-risk industry inside a global value chain. Watch for independent lab results, traceability demands from buyers, and sustained monitoring.

    Source: The Examination — December 18, 2025 (https://www.theexamination.org/articles/nigeria-closes-battery-recycling-factories-after-lead-poisoning)
    The Examination 2025-12-18

  • Anambra teen wins healthy cooking contest as Soludo’s programme pushes nutrition in schools

    Anambra teen wins healthy cooking contest as Soludo’s programme pushes nutrition in schools

    Photo Credit: The Punch
    2025-12-20 09:45:00

    In a report published by The Punch, a student of St. Charles College, Onitsha, Ikechukwu Ifechukwu, won Anambra’s 2025 Healthy Living Cooking Competition linked to First Lady Dr Nonye Soludo’s school programme.

    The event in Awka brought students from all 21 local government areas to compete on healthy meal preparation under time limits, with judging based on hygiene, taste, presentation and service.

    Organisers say the aim is to strengthen nutrition awareness and practical life skills among young people, while also challenging gender stereotypes around cooking.

    Daily Post described the outcome as a male student who “emerged winner” of the cooking competition in Anambra. The Punch quoted Mrs Soludo saying the initiative “defies stereotypes and traditional misconceptions,” adding that schoolboys have now won for two straight editions.

    Echotitbits take:
    It’s lifestyle content with a policy edge: nutrition habits built in school can scale into public health outcomes. Watch for whether the programme expands, how schools track nutrition outcomes, and whether local foods and hygiene education become more visible in the curriculum.

    Source: The Punch — December 20, 2025 (https://punchng.com/anambra-college-student-wins-soludos-cooking-competition/)
    The Punch 2025-12-20