The Kano State Government has identified the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) as a significant but avoidable public health concern, as more than 1.2 million citizens currently suffer from the potentially fatal illness.
This revelation was delivered by Health Commissioner Dr. Abubakar Labaran Yusuf at a press conference on the topic “Hepatitis: Let’s Break the Silence” in honour of 2025 World Hepatitis Day (WHD).
The state’s increasing infection rate is concerning, according to Dr. Yusuf, who also cautioned that if HBV is not identified and treated in a timely manner, it may cause deadly consequences like cancer and liver cirrhosis.
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In response, the Kano State Government has pledged N95 million to start HepFree Mothers, Healthy Babies, or HepFree Uwadajariri, a new public health initiative.
Launched in February 2025, the effort seeks to eradicate hepatitis B transmission from mother to child (MTCT) in accordance with the global 2030 eradication targets and Nigeria’s Triple eradication Strategy for HIV, hepatitis, and syphilis. Models of Nigerian Airways aircraft.
The commissioner further stated that Kano is the first state in Nigeria to independently start and finance the Triple Elimination Program, which provides pregnant women with a a diagnosis with free screening and treatment. Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF), an antiviral medication, is administered to pregnant women starting at 32 weeks of pregnancy in order to avoid transmission to their unborn children.
Similarly, the Federal Government has revealed that Nigeria loses between N13.3tn and N17.9tn annually in direct and indirect costs due to hepatitis.
This was stated on Monday by Prof. Muhammad Pate, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, during a press conference titled “Hepatitis: Let’s break it down” in honour of World Hepatitis Day.
Following this, World Health Organisation stated that hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver brought on by a number of viral and non-infectious causes. It can result in a number of health issues, such as severe liver damage and cancer, some of which may lead to death.
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The Federal Government in response to the concerning figures has announced that it was launching Project 365, a year-long, nationwide screening, diagnosis, and treatment campaign that would target each constituency in Nigeria to eradicate Hepatitis C and stop the spread of the B strain by 2030.
Dr. Oluyinka Olayemi, the Africa CDC’s National Coordinator, expressed the center’s support with Nigeria and commended the nation’s dedication to advancing effective health initiatives in a goodwill letter.
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