By Beti Baiye (Lead Writer) The COVID-19 pandemic opened a ‘Pandora’s box’ of never-ending problems putting enormous pressure on global health systems, exposing biases in global public health practices and disrupting global economies. …

By Michael Atima and Bunmi Oyebanji Obot (Lead Writers) It is a little-known fact that 5–10% of pregnancies in Nigeria are complicated by hypertension issues. Despite the significant burden of maternal mortality and morbidity (MMM), there hasn’t been sufficient focus on how noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) affect women of reproductive age…

By Aloysius Ugwu (Lead Writer) Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was making progress toward achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. However, since the onset of the pandemic, the call for countries to build resilient health systems has taken on a new level of urgency. …

Mrs Gertrude Edom, the founder and chief executive officer of St Gertrude Maternity Centre located in Topland, a suburb in Enugu city, had just seen her last set of patients and was settling down to attend to her administrative tasks. Her clinical duties include maternal and child health, immunisation and…

By Joy Ikott (Lead Writer) State Health Insurance Schemes are a vehicle through which State governments seek to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in accordance with the National Health Scheme Act, and the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Act. Bauchi State is one of the 35 states that has signed…

By Kemisola Agbaoye (Lead Writer) Nigeria, like the rest of the world, is experiencing a food crisis, exacerbated by climate change, rising inflation and conflict such as the war in Ukraine. However, Nigeria is no stranger to conflict. Since 2009, the Northeast region has seen violent extremists terrorising the BAY…

By Lydia Atieno (Lead Writer) Thirty-five-year-old Christelle Uwamahoro had always been aware of the significance of cervical cancer screenings. Community health workers in her village went door to door, educating residents and emphasising the importance of early screening for cervical cancer. “Despite this knowledge; I had second thoughts about screening,”…

By Folakemi Ajala (Lead Writer) A demographic dividend does not happen by accident, it requires a country to take deliberate and sustained action, which includes making the necessary investments and purposefully implementing the policies that would result in a decline in fertility and mortality levels. This, in turn, would create…

By Aloysius Ugwu (Lead Writer) Every year, at the National Council on Health (NCH), health leaders across Nigeria congregate to deliberate and approve policies aimed at improving the health of all Nigerians. The NCH, legislated through the National Health Act 2014 remains the highest decision-making body on matters relating to…