The Diabetes Association of Nigeria has called on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on diabetes

The Association’s president, Prof. Ejiofor Ugwu, during an interview warning that the disease has become a silent public health crisis across the country.

He noted that diabetes is already among the world’s top 10 causes of death and is projected to become the seventh leading cause globally by 2030 if the crisis isn’t curbed

“In Nigeria, an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 people die from diabetes every year this shows clearly that we have a catastrophe on our hands,” Ugwu said.

According to him, such a declaration would help authorities fully grasp the scale of the crisis and respond urgently whereas coordinating required sectors, institutions and communities nationwide.

“Government needs to recognise that this is a monster. You must understand the magnitude of the problem before you can effectively address it,” he added.

The DAN president also urged the government to subsidise essential anti-diabetic medications and remove import duties to make them more affordable noting that most diabetes drugs are imported, with little local production, and that import taxes significantly drive up costs.

“Once duties are paid, the landing cost becomes very high. If government removes these taxes and provides subsidies, drug prices will drop and become more affordable for patients, families and healthcare providers nationwide,” he explained.

Ugwu also called for the provision of trained diabetes specialists in rural healthcare centres.

“In many primary healthcare centres and general hospitals, you don’t find trained diabetes care specialists. As a result, patients are often poorly managed and only present at tertiary hospitals with severe complications,” he said.

Although Nigeria has over 34,000 primary healthcare centres, Ugwu noted many are non-functional due to lack of equipment, drugs and trained personnel.

Ugwu also called for training of healthcare workers in order to manage uncomplicated diabetes cases at the basic level, supported by an effective referral system.

“Data is critical. We need to know how many people are developing diabetes, how many are on treatment and what the outcomes are, in a systematic and continuous way,” he added stressing the importance of establishing a national diabetes registry to track prevalence, treatment outcomes and complications across the country.