The World Health Organization (WHO), Acting Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, has reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s healthcare system.
Ihekweazu, speaking during his first official visit to Nigeria on Friday in Abuja, since assuming office, underscored the country’s strategic importance to WHO’s work in Africa.
TheFact Daily gathered that Ihekweazu was appointed to serve as the Organization’s Acting Regional Director for Africa in place of Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, who led the regional office for ten years.
This appointment comes after the unexpected death of Dr Faustine Engelbert Ndugulile, a career politician from Tanzania, who was slated to be the next regional director.
Ndugulile died in November, only three months after he was elected.
Ihekweazu, is the assistant director-general for the division of health emergency intelligence and surveillance systems in the emergencies program at WHO. He joined WHO in 2021.
Before that, he served as the inaugural director-general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, where he helped build the institution from the ground up and helped the country navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, “Nigeria is our biggest country office, with the largest health program on the continent.
“That’s why I made it a priority to visit in my second week in office, to understand in greater detail the work we are doing here in support of the federal government,”.
He praised the country’s proactive approach to health reforms and commended the Minister of Health’s leadership, noting that WHO’s role was to provide technical and strategic support to national health priorities.
Addressing the recent resurgence of variant type 2 poliovirus in Nigeria, the acting WHO Regional Director underscored the need for heightened vigilance and a coordinated response.
“Polio has been a challenge for us in Nigeria. We worked very hard to eliminate wild poliovirus, but today we have variant type 2 polio still circulating in a few states in the northwest,” he said.
He disclosed that WHO is working closely with the Ministry of Health, state governments, and health agencies to ensure a robust vaccination campaign and effective surveillance strategies to halt transmission.
“Our role is to mobilize ourselves again to make sure we get ahead of this. The resilience of the Nigerian health system is remarkable, and we are confident that with strong coordination, we can eliminate this threat,” he assured.
He also addressed broader health system challenges in Africa, particularly workforce shortages and inadequate infrastructure.
He stressed the urgent need for reforms to ensure sustainable healthcare delivery across the continent.
“No doubt, we face several challenges in Africa infectious diseases, chronic conditions, and workforce shortages but we also have incredible expertise and a young, vibrant population,” he noted.
He pointed out that while many African countries, including Nigeria, were producing healthcare graduates, the challenge remains their absorption into the public sector.
“The key question is: how does the public sector integrate these trained professionals into the health system to serve our people?
“This is exactly where WHO plays a role in supporting governments in designing sustainable workforce retention strategies,” he explained.
He also acknowledged Nigeria’s health financing reforms, regulatory improvements, and primary healthcare revitalization efforts under the government’s SWAP (Sector-Wide Approach) initiative.
“Nigeria is making commendable progress in reforming its health sector, from financing to service delivery.
“WHO will continue to support these reforms to build a more resilient health system,” he said.
In light of recent disease outbreaks in Africa and beyond, the acting WHO Regional Director highlighted the need for stronger surveillance and response mechanisms.
Regarding the unknown disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), he reassured that WHO was already on the ground, providing technical and operational support.
“Every country has health threats. That is why institutions like Nigeria’s Center for Disease Control (NCDC) exist—to detect and respond promptly. WHO is supporting DRC just as we have done in Uganda, Tanzania, and other affected countries,” he stated.
He further referenced the measles outbreak in Texas, USA, stressing that it underscores the interconnected nature of global health and the need for strong vaccination programs worldwide.
“Who would have thought that measles would cause a major outbreak in the US today? This shows that health threats know no borders.
“We must continue to strengthen immunization programs and surveillance systems,” he said.
He also acknowledged the global decline in donor funding for health programs and urged African governments to take greater ownership of healthcare financing.
“There is a global financing challenge, and many of our traditional donors are struggling to maintain support. This is an opportunity for African governments to step up and take full responsibility for the health of their people,” he advised.
He assured that WHO, as a member-state-driven organization, remained committed to ensuring that countries build sustainable health systems with strong domestic funding mechanisms.
