The Federal Government has said that about 165 million Nigerians still require preventive chemotherapy for at least one neglected tropical disease (NTD), underlining the scale of the challenge the country faces despite recent progress in disease control.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Kunle Salako, disclosed this on Thursday at the 2026 World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) Day and Leprosy Day commemoration in Abuja, stressing the need for sustained political commitment, domestic funding, and coordinated action.

He said, “Globally, over one billion people are affected with NTDs across 149 countries, with Africa bearing about half of the burden.”

“Nigeria alone accounts for about 25 per cent of cases on the continent, with more than 200 million people at risk of one NTD or the other and 165 million people needing preventive chemotherapy.”

The minister explained that the annual World NTD Day is an opportunity to renew awareness, mobilise resources, highlight achievements, confront persistent challenges, and advocate for stronger prevention, control, and elimination efforts.

This year’s event was combined with Leprosy Day under the theme “Leprosy is Curable, The Real Challenge is Stigma,” he added. “While leprosy can be cured with timely treatment, stigma and discrimination remain the greatest obstacles to elimination,” Salako noted.

He said Nigeria’s NTD response is anchored on global frameworks such as the London Declaration of 2013, the Kigali Declaration of 2019, and the World Health Organisation’s NTD Roadmap 2021–2030, which emphasise government accountability, integration of services, sustainable financing, and political commitment.

Despite the large number still requiring chemotherapy, Salako highlighted key national achievements.

“About 119.9 million Nigerians no longer require treatment for lymphatic filariasis, while onchocerciasis transmission has been interrupted in 10 states, with 59 million people no longer needing ivermectin treatment as at December 2025,” he said.

He also reported an 89 per cent reduction in trachoma prevalence among at-risk populations, with treatment stopped in most endemic local government areas.

Other strides, according to the minister, include the procurement and distribution of anti-rabies vaccines and anti-snake venom drugs, the digitisation of NTD data, and the integration of NTD campaigns with malaria, immunisation, nutrition, and measles-rubella programmes to improve efficiency.

On leprosy, Salako said Nigeria has strengthened early case detection, contact tracing, and rolled out single-dose rifampicin for post-exposure prophylaxis in more states.

“We are ensuring uninterrupted access to free multidrug therapy nationwide, leveraging digital tools for targeted action, and involving persons affected in community interventions to reduce stigma,” he said.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Daju Kachollom, described NTDs as “diseases driven not just by poverty, but by inequality, weak health systems, and insufficient political attention.”

She noted that the country has aligned its National NTD Elimination Roadmap with the WHO framework, achieving milestones such as 10 states interrupting river blindness transmission and 33 million people no longer needing mass drug administration for trachoma.

She called on state governments to increase domestic funding, integrate NTD services into primary healthcare, and sustain collaboration with partners.