Stakeholders task states to commit more resources to health security amid recurring outbreaks
The call was made on Thursday in Abuja during the unveiling of the Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM) Strategy (2026–2028) by eHealth Africa.
Participants at the event said Nigeria continues to grapple with an evolving range of public health threats from infectious disease outbreaks to climate-related emergencies, even as gaps persist in surveillance, coordination and response systems.
They noted that while states are seeing increased revenues, this has not translated into stronger investment in disease surveillance, emergency preparedness and response systems. Meanwhile, outbreaks typically originate at the sub-national level, where investment, coordination and technical capacity remain weak.
Mohammed Salem, a representative from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said state governments must elevate health security to a top political priority, stressing that leadership gaps continue to weaken outbreak response.
“State leadership must put health security on the front burner,” he said, citing recent Lassa fever outbreaks where some states struggled to activate incident management systems due to lack of high-level support.
“No matter what efforts we make, if the leadership is not there, the system will not work,” he said.
Salem also pointed to persistent infrastructure gaps, particularly in laboratory capacity, describing as unacceptable the continued practice of transporting samples over long distances for basic diagnosis.
“You can imagine a disease like cholera , which should be a national embarrassment, and samples are still being moved from Sokoto to Abuja for PCR testing. We need systems that can serve as resilient cushions when pandemics occur,” he urged.
Oluyemi Oluyinka, represenatitive from the Africa CDC, said Nigeria’s health security efforts would remain limited unless resources and capacity are strengthened at the state level, where outbreaks originate.
“A chain is only as strong as its weakest point. Outbreaks happen in the states, and that is where investment should go.l,” she said.
She questioned whether increased allocations to sub-national governments are being effectively directed to health, raising concerns about funding priorities, disbursement delays and utilisation.
“What are those funds being used for? Is there an increase in allocation to health, and if so, when are those funds released?” she queried.
Oluyinka also stressed that beyond technical capacity, states need stronger leadership and coordination to manage emergency responses, as well as real-time data systems linking communities, local governments and national authorities for faster detection and containment.
Speaking on the PHEM strategy, Kazeem Balogun Senior manager, programmes, eHealth Africa said it is built on four pillars: strengthening coordination through Public Health Emergency Operations Centres, adopting a “One Health” approach, enhancing community-based surveillance, and improving early detection systems.
He said the framework is designed to shift Nigeria’s approach from reactive responses to proactive preparedness, particularly at the grassroots level.
