{"id":897815,"date":"2026-04-08T12:18:53","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T17:18:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/08\/nigeria-strengthening-preparedness-ahead-of-next-pandemic\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T12:18:53","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T17:18:53","slug":"nigeria-strengthening-preparedness-ahead-of-next-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/08\/nigeria-strengthening-preparedness-ahead-of-next-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigeria strengthening preparedness ahead of next pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0Iziaq Salako, the minister of state for health and social
\nwelfare, says pandemics are inevitable and nations must be ready to respond
\nswiftly.<\/p>\n

Salako spoke on Monday at the public health symposium on
\n\u2018Lessons on Pandemic Preparedness and Response: Insights from China and
\nNigeria\u2019 in Abuja.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThe next pandemic is not a matter of if but when,\u201d NAN
\nquoted him as saying.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He noted the importance of coordinated, equitable, and
\ninnovative preparedness, adding that COVID-19, which claimed over seven million
\nlives worldwide, exposed vulnerabilities in global health systems while
\ndemonstrating the value of collaboration and resilience.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Salako said Nigeria has recorded progress in strengthening
\nits health security landscape including the digitalisation of infectious
\ndisease surveillance with SORMAS, training of health workers, expanded
\ndiagnostic infrastructure with over 100 public health laboratories, and the
\nestablishment of infectious disease centers and public health emergency
\noperation centers in all states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He said these measures helped improve Nigeria\u2019s technical
\nevaluation score from 39 percent in 2017 to 54 percent in 2023.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The minister also noted China\u2019s rapid and disciplined
\nresponse to COVID-19, emphasising the importance of technology integration and
\ncommunity mobilization.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cMutual learning between Nigeria and China is critical to
\nbuilding resilient systems capable of safeguarding citizens and optimizing
\nglobal actions against future health emergencies,\u201d he said.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Salako said under President Bola Tinubu, health security is
\nprioritised as the fourth pillar of the health sector renewal investment
\ninitiative.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cState-level preparedness is being strengthened through the
\n7-1-7 target and the SITAware Transition Project, while the One Health approach
\nensures coordinated attention to human, animal, and environmental health,\u201d he
\nsaid.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cNigeria is also engaged in WHO pandemic agreement
\nnegotiations, reflecting its commitment to multilateral cooperation.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The minister said pandemic preparedness requires a
\nwhole-of-society approach, involving governments, private sector, communities,
\nresearchers, and international partners.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Salako urged stakeholders to focus on actionable policies,
\npartnerships, and innovations to ensure global readiness and equity.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cLet us work together across borders and sectors to ensure
\nfull readiness for the next pandemic, leaving no one behind,\u201d he added.<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday<\/a><\/span><\/span>
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\n<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Margherita Antes
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Iziaq Salako, the minister of state for health and social welfare, says pandemics are inevitable and nations must be ready to respond swiftly. Salako spoke on Monday at the public health symposium on \u2018Lessons on Pandemic Preparedness and Response: Insights from China and Nigeria\u2019 in Abuja. \u201cThe next pandemic is not a matter of if<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":897816,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27096,46884],"tags":[15956,129072],"class_list":{"0":"post-897815","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nigeria","8":"category-strengthening","9":"tag-nigeria","10":"tag-strengthening"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=897815"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897815\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/897816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=897815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=897815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=897815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}