The Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Lagos (UNILAG), held its maiden yearly scientific conference, convening researchers, policymakers, health professionals, academics and industry stakeholders to deliberate on responses to emerging global health, environmental and biodiversity challenges.

The conference, themed ‘One health: Preparing the next generation for a changing world,’ was designed to promote interdisciplinary collaboration and advance research, education, and innovation across human, animal, and environmental health, as well as sustainability.

While declaring the conference opened, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Folasade Ogunsola, said the world is experiencing rapid urbanisation and technological advancement that are fundamentally altering the global health landscape.

Ogunsola stated that these changes make it imperative for institutions to adopt integrated approaches to disease prevention, environmental management and public health planning.

She noted that the defining health challenges of the present time include emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, climate change and food insecurity.

The vice-chancellor said these problems cannot be addressed in isolation by any single discipline or sector.

“From emerging infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance to climate change and food insecurity, the defining health challenges of our time require integrated thinking and collective action. A One Health approach is no longer optional,” she said.

Ogunsola expressed optimism that the maiden conference would stimulate new partnerships among scientists, clinicians, policymakers and industry leaders, and that such collaborations would produce research outputs with direct and meaningful impact on society.

Delivering the keynote address, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, stressed the urgent need for an integrated biosecurity system that deliberately links human, animal and environmental health.

Abayomi described biosecurity as a holistic, multi-sectoral approach capable of safeguarding citizens, natural resources, and biodiversity from diseases, pests, toxins, and other evolving risks.

He warned that Lagos, as one of Africa’s fastest-growing megacities, faces increasing health threats arising specifically from interactions among humans, animals and the environment.

“Every serious health threat facing Lagos in the coming years will emerge at the interface between people, animals and the environment, particularly as global mobility continues to increase,” he said.

The commissioner explained that several factors are reshaping global health risks.

He listed these to include demographic shifts, expanding trade routes, growth in tourism, the effects of climate change, advances in technology, the emergence of new pathogens, and the depletion of natural resources.

According to him, the Lagos State government is already embedding the One Health framework into governance structures.

He said this involves fostering structured collaboration among state agencies responsible for health, agriculture, environmental protection, sanitation, and urban planning to build resilience against current and future threats.