Oluwafunbi Bello 
Former NCDC Director-General, Ifedayo Adetifa
ABUJA, Nigeria – Former Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, has urged Nigeria to strengthen its capacity to define, diagnose and monitor its own health challenges, saying true health sovereignty goes beyond funding and local pharmaceutical production.
Adetifa made the call on Saturday in Abuja while speaking with journalists on his publication, “Who Holds the Power, and Who Names It?”
Health sovereignty goes beyond funding
According to the former NCDC chief, countries should not only finance their healthcare systems but also determine which diseases are recognised as national priorities.
“Health sovereignty should include the ability of countries to determine what constitutes a health problem, what is detected and counted, and what evidence is considered credible in shaping health policies,” he said.
He warned that relying heavily on diagnostic tools and disease definitions developed elsewhere could prevent Nigeria from accurately understanding its own disease burden.
“A diagnostic test decides what is detected, and surveillance case definitions decide what is counted, so together they decide what registers as a problem at all,” Adetifa explained.
He advocated increased investment in diagnostic technology, disease surveillance, research and sustainable health financing to strengthen Nigeria’s health system.
Adetifa also urged the government to ensure international health partnerships support nationally identified priorities instead of creating fragmented programmes.
The former NCDC Director-General welcomed the Federal Government’s Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) for Health, describing it as an important step towards improving coordination among development partners.
According to him, a stronger and more integrated health system would enhance Nigeria’s ability to respond to disease outbreaks while improving national and global health security.
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Mirian Gom 
Oluwatobi Adu 