Nigeria has called on multilateral institutions, development partners, philanthropies, researchers and the private sector to coordinate efforts to tackle Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) globally.
Dr Iziaq Salako, the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, made the call at the inauguration of OneSCD on the sidelines of the ongoing 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
OneSCD is a global partnership aimed at advancing equity and transforming SCD care.
Salako urged stakeholders to invest in country-owned health systems and support efforts to move proven SCD interventions from pilot programmes to national scale.
He said the global response to the disease continued to face severe inequities, structural bottlenecks, fragmentation and years of inadequate prioritisation.
According to him, nearly eight million people live with SCD globally, with more than 75 percent of them in sub-Saharan Africa.
He said Nigeria carries the highest burden of the disease globally, with an estimated 150,000 to 180,000 babies born with SCD in the country annually.
Salako said the scale of the disease had made it a national priority for Nigeria, with SCD interventions integrated into the country’s child survival, maternal health, primary healthcare, Non-Communicable Diseases and Universal Health Coverage agendas.
“This is why OneSCD matters; to provide a global mechanism that connects political leadership, technical expertise, lived experience and financing behind country-led action,” he said.
The minister said Nigeria, as a champion country, would continue to integrate early diagnosis and comprehensive care across primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare levels.
He said the country would also strengthen national accountability through improved data, measurable targets and sustainable financing.
Salako said Nigeria would ensure that people living with SCD and their families remained at the centre of policy, programme design and evaluation.
He added that the country would share implementation lessons and advocate for SCD across global child health, NCD, maternal health and UHC agendas.
The minister said Nigeria was already strengthening its national response through a programme anchored by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National Sickle Cell Disease Steering Committee and national guidance for the control and clinical management of the disease.
He said pilot programmes in Lagos, Kano and the Federal Capital Territory were testing scalable newborn screening approaches through maternity, immunisation, paediatric and primary healthcare services.
According to him, six centres of excellence had also been established and equipped with high-performance liquid chromatography machines for specialised diagnosis.
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He said Nigeria was improving access to affordable diagnostics and medicines, strengthening supply chains, training health workers and establishing referral networks.
Salako added that the country was integrating SCD indicators into national health information systems and pursuing sustainable financing through health insurance, domestic resources and responsible public-private partnerships.
He said the aim was to ensure that families did not bear the cost of SCD care alone.
“The launch of OneSCD is moving SCD from a neglected disease to the front burner.
“It must be more than a ceremonial moment as we double up to move from talk attention to on-ground implementation attention,” Salako said.
He said the inauguration should lead to coordinated action, mutual accountability and measurable progress, so that a child’s place of birth would no longer determine whether he or she survived and thrived with SCD.
Salako said Nigeria was ready to contribute, learn and partner with other countries and organisations in advancing the OneSCD partnership.
According to reports, OneSCD was inaugurated by Nigeria, Uganda, India, Jamaica and St Kitts and Nevis.
The partnership was inaugurated alongside UNICEF, the World Health Organisation, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, St Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the World Coalition on SCD.
