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From Autonomy to Accountability: Can Local Governments Deliver Better Primary Health Care in Nigeria?
About 70%of Nigerians depend on primary health care (PHC) centres for healthcare. For most people, this centre is the most frequent point of contact with any government service. The local government chairman is supposed to run it, fund it, and is responsible when it fails. The Supreme Court’s July 2024 ruling confirmed that state governments […]
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In Kaduna Communities, Tailors Are Bridging the Family Planning Trust Gap
Hadiza Mohammed and Onyedikachi Ewe (Lead writers) In Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Salma Musa recalls when many women around her rarely spoke openly about family planning. For some, the topic was sensitive. For others, it was surrounded by fear, misinformation and uncertainty about what family planning really meant. “Before now, many women […]
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Ekiti State Deploys Digital Solutions and Sustainable Financing to Expand Maternal Health Access
Maureen Moneke (Lead Writer) Maternal health remains one of the most critical indicators of a functioning health system. In Nigeria, pregnancy often unfolds within a fragile health system; therefore, digital health solutions can go a long way to bridge these gaps, but their success depends on whether they respond to real system needs. Many women […]
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Trust Returns to Gurjiya PHC After Solar Battery Theft Resolution, Yet Accountability Concerns Persist
Rahima Shehu Dokaji After residents lamented the theft of a newly installed solar battery at Gurjiya Primary Health Care (PHC) in a town hall meeting in January, community members have returned to another town hall meeting held in April to ask a new question: Can a health facility experiencing growing...
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How Antibiotic Abuse Fuel Deaths in Ghana: Pharmacies and street hawkers aid prescription disaster
Emmanuel K. Dogbevi Kofi, 38, married with three children, works as a commercial minibus driver known in Ghana as ‘tro-tro’. He plies along the Accra–Kaneshie route in the Greater Accra region. One morning he woke up complaining of fever, chills, and general body weakness. When he consulted a physician at...
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Beyond the Counter: How CareHub Is Linking Pharmacy Customers to Primary Health Care in Lagos
School was on a long break when Temilola visited her uncle, Bayo, in Lagos State. A few days in, she began to complain of severe stomach pain. At first, Bayo did not think much of it. “She just kept saying her stomach was hurting,” he said, “So, I thought maybe...
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Beyond Genotype Awareness: Nigeria Must Build a Sickle Cell Response That Serves Warriors
Modupe Babawale (Guest writer) Every year on June 19, Nigeria joins the global community to observe World Sickle Cell Day. The 2026 theme, “Closing the Survival Gap: Equity in Sickle Cell Disease,” serves as an important reminder that Nigeria must now address the unequal access to diagnosis, medicines, blood, specialised...
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Three Months After Speaking Out, Indabo Residents Still Await Improved PHC Services
Hadiza Musa Three months after residents raised concerns about poor healthcare services during a town hall meeting, many of the same challenges continue to affect patients at Indabo Primary Health Centre (PHC) in Kano State. For residents like Zainab Alkasim, the challenges affect daily healthcare decisions and maternal health outcomes....
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Nigeria Cannot Prevent the Next Outbreak if It Cannot Diagnose It
Shalom David and Vivianne Ihekweazu (Lead writers) In late 2013, Ebola began spreading in Guinea, but the outbreak went undetected for more than three months. Patients arriving at the health facilities presented with fever, vomiting and diarrhoea, symptoms that closely resembled malaria, typhoid, or cholera. Without the diagnostic tools needed...
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Curated Conversations: Moji Makanjuola on Building Public Trust Through Health Journalism
Public trust in health systems is established when people receive clear, consistent, and credible information from trusted voices, not just from policy documents. It is built when communities understand what a health intervention means for them, why it matters, where to access services, and what questions to ask when promises...
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Beyond Awareness: Why Nigeria Must Fund a Period-Friendly Future
Every year on 28 May, Nigeria joins the global community to observe Menstrual Hygiene Day and its goal of building a #PeriodFriendlyWorld, where menstruation does not limit dignity, health, education, or opportunities. In 2025, the global campaign reached 971 million people, demonstrating how menstrual health has shifted from silence to...
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The Anatomy of an Outbreak in a Conflict Setting & Nigeria’s Preparedness for Ebola
The latest Ebola outbreak in DRC is unfolding in a conflict-affected region where insecurity, displacement, and fragile trust are complicating containment efforts. What does this reveal about Nigeria's preparedness for outbreaks in its own most challenging settings? When the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic...
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Africa’s Precision Medicine Future Depends on Stronger Research and Clinical Trial Systems
Olatunde Olaoluwa and Prudence Enema (Lead writers) Precision medicine will not deliver equity for Africa if Africa remains underrepresented in the evidence that shapes it. The endorsement of a new resolution on Precision Medicine at the 79th World Health Assembly reflects an important step towards health equity and Universal Health...
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‘Garden in a Box’ Initiative is Helping Pregnant Women Eat Nutritious Food While Building Self-Reliance Through Gardening
Tzar Oluigbo (Lead writer) Tola (not real name) did not expect much when she first received the small white box with a bunch of biodegradable seed sheets neatly tucked inside. Yet, the spinach, beetroots, and tomatoes she planted sprouted within weeks. For the first time in months, she could pick...
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“Deliver Like the Hebrew Women”: How Traditional Myths and Religious Misconceptions Fuel Maternal and Child Deaths
Dr Otubo Victor Ogemdi* and Vivianne Ihekweazu (Lead writers) Sarah lived in Abuja. Ruth lived in Tel Aviv. Both were young, first-time expectant mothers. Both were filled with as much hope as anxiety as their due dates approached. Sarah had the support of her elderly mum and her pastor; “You...
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Nigeria Health Watch is a critical component of the work we do at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention towards protecting the health of Nigerians. NHW continues to amplify the work being done at NCDC as well as nationwide towards strengthening health security and advancing healthcare in Nigeria. We are grateful for our partnership and your continued advocacy for improved funding for epidemic preparedness and especially support towards risk communications during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Ifedayo Adetifa
Former DG, Nigeria Centre for Disease ControlI have had the honour of working with Nigeria Health Watch for over 5 years and have witnessed the exponential growth and reach of the platform. As a health leader and cancer advocate, I value the importance of accurate data and information. With Nigeria Health Watch, I am always assured of.
Dr. Zainab Shinkafi-Bagudu
MD/CEO Medicaid Radio-Diagnostics & ClinicsNigeria Health Watch is a powerful voice for healthcare development in Africa. Through solutions-based journalism, creative storytelling, and policy advocacy, they continue to transform the way healthcare is reported, discussed, and perceived by everyone, particularly policymakers. The energy and professionalism they bring to projects are unmatched and I can attest that they have closed a longstanding gap in health communications in Nigeria.
Dr. Oyebanji Filani
Commissioner, Health & Human Services Ekiti State at Government of Ekiti StateReliable information is essential to improving health care, and Nigeria Health Watch plays a key role in delivering it. Through surveys, analysis, field reporting, and solutions-based journalism, it consistently produces insights grounded in everyday realities that inform improvements in health services and outcomes. All of this is driven by its skilled and innovative team, whose work is increasingly recognised across the continent and beyond
Dickens Olewe
Program Officer, Gates FoundationOur partnership with Nigeria Health Watch has been instrumental in advancing Africa’s voice in global public health discourse. Through strategic collaboration on platforms such as the Africa Health Agenda International Conference (AHAIC) and across digital media, they bring a distinctive strength in translating complex health challenges into compelling, human-centered narratives that drive both engagement and action
Dr Githinji Gitahi
Group CEO, Amref Health AfricaMSD for Mothers has collaborated with Nigeria Health Watch since 2018. What is most exciting about working with Nigeria Health Watch is their ability to connect the dots across public health actors and themes — linking the lived experiences of people with the healthcare workers delivering care, the health innovators designing solutions to bridge gaps, and governments at all levels that set standards of care, create enabling policy environments, and serve as the primary purchasers of healthcare through state insurance and contributory health schemes.
Iyadunni Olubode
Lead of Kenya & Nigeria Programs, MSD for MothersWorking with Nigeria Health Watch has been an absolute pleasure. Across two consecutive conferences, their team has demonstrated exceptional professionalism, genuine passion, and a tireless commitment to going above and beyond. They made every aspect of our partnership seamless and stress-free. Their dedication to delivering impactful, high-quality coverage speaks for itself, and I look forward to continuing this partnership at many more conferences to come
Winnie Kariuki
Global Health Strategies Associate, KenyaNigeria Health Watch has done what few organisations achieve — they made citizen voices drive real policy change in Kano State. Their evidence-driven approach, combining community scorecards, town halls, and health storytelling, has transformed how we listen to citizens and respond to their needs. From deploying healthcare workers to increased enrollment of vulnerable people into health insurance, their community engagement model has delivered results that speak for themselves.