The Lead Strategist of Gatefield, Adewunmi Emoruwa, has disclosed that Nigeria records over 684,000 deaths from Non Communicable Diseases ( NCDs) every year.
Emoruwa made this disclosure on Wednesday, 23 October, 2024 in Abuja during a two-day health summit themed “Beyond65: Preventing the Quiet Epidemic” organized by Gatefield in Abuja.
Gatefield, also launched a new health strategy to tackle the growing crisis of NCDs in Nigeria, where life expectancy averages just 52 years.
“NCDs are responsible for over 684,000 deaths annually in Nigeria—equivalent to wiping out the entire population of Luxembourg every single year. This preventable crisis can no longer be ignored,” Emoruwa said, just as he also disclosed that NCD-related deaths in Nigeria have increased from 24% in 2010 to 29% today.
Presenting the strategy, Emoruwa said the dangerous rise of unhealthy diets such as foods and beverages containing added-sugars, excessive salt consumption, alcohol and tobacco use, and environmental pollution are driving factors for the quiet epidemic of NCDs.
He said Nigerians consume 4.9 servings of sugary drinks per week, nearly double the global average. Salt intake is dangerously high at 5.8 grams per day, above the WHO recommended level.
He said, “Nigeria has a high prevalence of heavy episodic drinking at 27.3%, and without intervention, smoking rates in Africa are projected to rise by 30% by 2030
Around 48 million Nigerians are not physically active enough, increasing the risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.”
He further said to reduce consumption, there was need for urgent interventions, adding that there was need to tackle tobacco use, sedentary lifestyle and ensure behaviour change among others.
“NCDs like cancer and heart disease are not death sentences if caught early. But too often, people don’t recognize the signs, don’t get tested, and seek help only when it’s too late. The government must invest in messaging, they shouldn’t wait for the WHO, they shouldn’t shouldn’t wait for the UN.They need to bring the money out,” he added.
Gatefield’s Board Co-Chair Sa’adatu Hamu-Aliyu, said the average Nigerian does not live past the age of 52 and the average African does not live past the age of 64.
She said, “Compare this to Europe, Japan, and Canada, where life expectancy exceeds 80 years. This means that an average person in the developed world is likely to live at least 20 years longer than their fellow humans in low and middle income populations.”
She said Gatefield’s health strategy outlines five key interventions aimed at reducing preventable deaths and improving life expectancy. They are fixing our national diet,
Taking down tobacco, and supporting mental health among others.
She added that Gatefield’s strategy will push for policies that encourage routine screenings, public health education, and stronger enforcement of regulations on ultra-processed foods, sugar sweetened beverages, and harmful substances like tobacco and alcohol.
Babatunde Irukera, Former Executive Vice-Chairman/CEO of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, said, “A robust policy and structure, will be a combination of hard and soft infrastructure in the forms of both physical structures such as facilities and equipment, and soft ones such as sufficiently trained human capital who recognize their roles and obligations as caregivers and institutions to ensure accountability.”
