Nigeria’s Hospitals On Frontline Of Africa’s Superbug Surge
By STELLA JOHNSON OGBOVOVEH
Nigeria at the Centre of Africa’s AMR Storm
A Nation Treating Infections in the Dark
NIGERIA has emerged as one of the hardest-hit countries in Africa’s worsening antimicrobial resistance (AMR) emergency, according to the continent’s largest-ever AMR mapping study. Released by Africa CDC in Abuja, the MAAP-led research shows that Nigeria’s health system is fighting a losing battle—not due to lack of antibiotics, but due to lack of diagnostics.
Over 187,000 Tests, One Verdict
The study reviewed 187,000+ bacterial test results across 205 labs in 14 African countries. Findings revealed methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections at over 70 per cent in Nigeria and Ghana, signalling severe treatment limitations. Ghana and Malawi recorded the highest resistance to third-generation cephalosporins—antibiotics often used to salvage failing treatments.
Structural Weaknesses, Human Consequences
Experts say Nigeria’s AMR burden is worsened by unregulated over-the-counter antibiotic sales, self-medication, and clinical guesswork. Public health specialist, Dr Gabriel Adakole, noted that while NCDC is building surveillance capacity, most local hospitals lack routine bacterial testing, meaning prescriptions are often speculative.
The Most Vulnerable Pay the Price
The data showed that people over 65 were 28 per cent more likely to develop resistant infections, while hospital patients faced 24 per cent higher risk. Researchers also confirmed that prior antibiotic use—often undocumented—increases resistance likelihood.
Less Testing, More Superbugs
Only two per cent of African health facilities could test for bacterial infections. Just 12 per cent of lab records were linked to patient data, making trend-tracking nearly impossible. Dr Yewande Alimi of Africa CDC warned that reliance on handwritten registers slows reporting, weakens data integrity, and allows resistant infections to circulate undetected.
Policy Without Practice
Activists and researchers argue that Nigeria’s policies on AMR, though growing, remain mostly advisory, not operational. The report called for digitised data systems, stricter import controls on untested used antibiotics, improved lab funding, and measurable enforcement systems that reward testing-compliant hospitals rather than punishing failures after lives are lost.
