By Ayomide Otitoju
The Lagos State Government on Tuesday ramped up efforts to combat tuberculosis (TB) with an awareness walk and stakeholders’ symposium to mark the 2026 World Tuberculosis Day, reaffirming its commitment to eliminating the disease.
The event, organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady TB Steering Committee, began with a sensitisation walk around the Alausa Secretariat in Ikeja. Participants, including health workers, development partners, students and community advocates, raised awareness on TB prevention, early detection and treatment adherence.
The exercise culminated in a symposium at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, where policymakers and health experts reviewed progress and outlined strategies to curb the disease.
Delivering the keynote address, the First Lady, Claudiana Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, called for intensified awareness, sustainable financing and grassroots mobilisation, noting that TB remains preventable and curable. She urged community health workers to serve as frontline advocates and stressed the importance of early education and treatment compliance to prevent drug-resistant cases.
She also highlighted a significant detection gap, revealing that of an estimated 30,000 TB cases in Lagos, only about 16,000 have been identified, leaving many undiagnosed and capable of spreading the disease.
In his remarks, Commissioner for Health Akin Abayomi described TB as a major public health concern driven by the state’s dense population. He noted that Lagos records about 24,000 cases annually, with thousands still undiagnosed, and warned against the risks of incomplete treatment and rising drug-resistant TB.
Special Adviser on Health Kemi Ogunyemi said the commemoration provided a platform to strengthen collaboration and sustain progress through improved diagnostics and expanded treatment access.
Representatives of the World Health Organization, Stop TB Partnership, and other development partners commended Lagos for expanding TB services but called for increased funding, enhanced surveillance and stronger community engagement.
The event concluded with a renewed commitment from stakeholders to intensify collective action under the theme, “Yes! We Can End TB: Led by Countries, Powered by People.
