122m Nigerians at Risk of Contracting Neglected Tropical Diseases – Health Ministry

NOVEMBER 5, 2020

The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) has revealed that at least 122 million people in Nigeria are at risk of getting Neglected Tropical Disease (NTDs).

Director and National Coordinator of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) Control/Elimination/Eradication Programme at the FMoH, Chukwuma Anyaike, made the disclosure on Thursday at a two-day media dialogue in Ibadan.

The dialogue was organised by the Child Rights Information Bureau (CRIB) Federal Ministry of Information and Culture in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Anyaike explained that NTDs are a group of 20 disease conditions that are common on tropical or subtropical regions and are closely associated with poverty, poor sanitation, lack of water sources, substandard housing condition and deficient health care access.

Some of the diseases include Lymphatic Filariasis (Elephantiasis), Soil-Transmitted Helminthiasis (STH), Onchocerciasis (River blindness), Trachoma (Granular Conjunctivitis) and Schistosomiasis (Bilharzia).

“The diseases are called neglected because they tend to affect the world’s poorest and received less attention than other diseases.

“It is estimated that 122 million people in Nigeria are affected or at risk of getting NTDs.

“Of the number, 20 per cent are pre-school age children, 28 per cent are school-age children and 52 per cent are adults”.

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According to him, NTDs has a great impact on economic growth and should duly be tackled in order to reduce poverty in the country.

“Sustainable economic development cannot occur without addressing NTDs because we need to have a country free of NTDs.

“ The country needs to reduce the morbidity and mortality of the diseases to the barest minimum.

“We need to control, eliminate and eradicate the diseases,” Anyaike said.

He said part of strategies to tackle NTDs should include mass administration of medicines, innovation and intensified disease management, integrated vector management as well as improved water, sanitation and hygiene.

Anyaike however called for more funding to address the disease.