Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has called on Nigerians to be wary of excessive intake of salt beyond the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended daily limit of five grammes.

It urged the Federal Government to accelerate enforcement of salt targets in processed and packaged foods, critical to checkmating the country’s growing prevalence of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and kidney failure.

In a statement to mark the World Salt Awareness Week 2025, the group referenced World WHO data showing that reducing salt intake is one of the most cost-effective measures countries can take to improve population health outcomes.

WHO member-states are on a plan to reduce the global population’s intake of salt by 30 per cent by the end of this year. But most countries, including Nigeria, are unlikely to meet the deadline.

According to the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (FMoHSW), Nigerians consume between seven and nine grammes of salt daily, far exceeding the WHO benchmark of five grammes (equivalent to two grammes of sodium).

Consequently, no less than 10 per cent of cardiovascular disease deaths in the country are attributed to excess sodium consumption. Sodium’s overconsumption has also been tied to the alarming rise in hypertension, now affecting over 35 per cent of adult Nigerians.

“This is too heavy a burden for the health sector to bear, and the issue is a major contributor to Nigeria’s alarming burden of non-communicable diseases,” said Executive Director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi.

He reaffirmed his organisation’s support for the National Guideline for Sodium Reduction recently launched by the FMoHSW. Oluwafemi also urged the ministry to ramp up support to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), which is drafting the regulations.

The statement noted that cultural practices, rapid urbanisation, deceptive marketing and changing lifestyles were tilting Nigerians’ dietary patterns towards ultra-processed foods high in sodium, sugar and unhealthy fats.