BY BANKOLE BUKUNOLA MONSURAT
The Federal Government of Nigeria and stakeholders in Abuja on Saturday developed a policy document that would mitigate the impact of climate change on health care delivery in the country.
Dr Chukwuma Anyaike, Director of Public Health, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said this during a two-day National Stakeholders Validation Workshop, on Nigeria’s Climate Change Health Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment report.
Anyaike explained that there had been an upsurge of flooding with the attendant health complications in the country.
“For instance, the country has witnessed cases of cholera, some places where mosquitos do not breed, the effect of climate has made it warmer for the victors to breed in such places, which increases the burden of malaria.
“There is also the case of flooding with the attendance of increasing the breeding sites of lymphatic filariasis,” he said.
According to him, the 774 Local Government Areas visited, 583 of them have high burden of lymphatic filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis.
The director said that the flooding had washed the farms and destroyed property in many places.
According to him, 40 per cent of complications of flooding come from drowning.
“There are lots of issues that have to do with climate change and its impact on health, so we are here to come up with development of a document to address the health issues caused by it.
“First, we need to find out the vulnerability and the impact on health, we have all the relevant stakeholders, and we are there to come out with a document that is implementable.
“This is because the country used to come out with documents and at the end it will not be implemented, maybe because we are not bringing stakeholders on board,” he said.
Anyaike said that the health system was built on the principle of primary health care and there was need to get it at the level.
“We will come up with documents that will support the health minister to address health issues in the country,” he said.
Also, Dr Walter Mulombo, Country Representative to Nigeria, World Health Organisation (WHO), said that the health sector was becoming highly vulnerable to climate change.
Mulombo, who was represented by Dr Edwin Edeh, National Technical Officer, Public Health and Environment, WHO, said that the country was faced with raising effects of flooding.
Mulomboi said he had witnessed cholera causes in some states and most of the health facilities were affected by climatic issues.
“So, with such issue of concern the health sector needs to be proactive to take certain measures.
“These measures, we need to know what the challenges and the gaps are and how the sector can respond to climate crises.
“Assessment has been conducted with partners to see how we can come out with priority interventions that can solve climate problems in the health centre,” he said.
According to him, the intervention will help protect Nigerians from health emergencies, it will also ensure there is adequate financing to support climate related issues in the health system.
Mulombo said that Nigeria was the first county to be driving the vulnerability assessment report.
Mr Rob Wood, Managing Director, International LTD Consultant, Halcyon, said they were hired with support from United Kingdom government to support the ministry of health to carry out first Nigerian climate change and vulnerability and adaptation assessment report.
Wood said that the project started in January and that data were collected from all the six political zones.
He said that they spoke with more than 300 stakeholders and carried out enough analysis.
“We are looking at the current issues and what will be the future risk on the health sector as Nigerians’ health in regard to climate changes needs the validation.
“So, we are here to validate report which will be launched in a few weeks’ time,” Wood said.