Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu has said for Nigeria to achieve the global Tuberculosis (TB) targets by 2035, it will require sustained investment, innovative strategies, and a renewed focus on breaking barriers that hinder access to essential care and support.
Tinubu, while speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2024 National TB conference in Abuja, highlighted the critical role of collaboration between public and private sectors.
The conference is themed “Public-Private Partnership and Integrated Service Delivery– Panacea to End TB in Nigeria.
She noted that these partnerships are vital to improving TB prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, ensuring no one is left behind in the fight against the disease.
She said despite progress made in the fight against TB, the global burden of TB remains alarming, particularly in low and middle-income countries like Nigeria.
“Globally, and according to the 2024 WHO global TB report, an estimated 10.8 million people developed TB in 2023, with 1.6 million people losing their lives, and 12 per cent of the global burden affecting the most vulnerable – the children and young adolescents,” she said.
She said TB remains a leading cause of death in Nigeria, with the country ranking 6th globally and first in Africa.
Quoting the WHO report, she said Nigeria recorded approximately 467,000 TB cases in 2023.
She reiterated the government’s commitment to achieving the global TB targets by 2035, which include reducing TB deaths by 95 per cent, TB incidence by 90 per cent, and eliminating catastrophic costs for TB-affected households.
“To achieve this, we will require sustained investment, innovative strategies, and a renewed focus on breaking the barriers that prevent people from accessing the care and support that they desperately need,” she said
Leaving no one behind
In his keynote address, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, said TB affects millions in the country, especially vulnerable populations, including women and children. Pate said tackling this disease requires an inclusive, rights-based, and gender-responsive approach that leaves no one behind.
