Health experts have identified inadequate funding, lack of awareness, testing and treatment gaps as key factors responsible for the high number of tuberculosis deaths in Nigeria .
The experts while decrying the development called for urgent interventions to address the trend which left over two hundred persons dead in 2023 according to a World Health Organisation (WHO) report.
Health experts, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Media stakeholders, Private sector organizations, amongst others have met to brainstorm on the challenges limiting the fight against Tuberculosis in Nigeria as the nation approaches the 2025 deadline for the global eradication of TB.
Statistics reveals that little gains have been recorded over the years in the fight against the spread of TB with Nigeria ranking number one in Africa and sixth in the world, among nations with high burden of Tuberculosis cases.
Speakers want health authorities to leverage on the identified administrative and technical loopholes hindering Nigeria from attaining the 2025 global target for the complete eradication of the Tuberculosis disease to address them, appealing to government at all levels and private organizations to support in the fight through the provision of facilities for diagnosis, testing kits, drugs for treatment at the DOT centres across the country.
Tuberculosis is ranked second most deadly disease in Nigeria after COVID, which claimed no fewer than 245,000 Nigeria lives annually with an approximate 590,000 new cases reported yearly.
(Editor: Ken Eseni)
