By Ochiaka Ugwu
According to National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) data published in May 2017 by PubMed, it was stated that the overall mortality rate for type 2 diabetes in Nigeria was 30.2 (95% CI 14.6 to 45.8) per 100 000 population, with a case fatality rate of 22.0% (95% CI 8.0% to 36.0%). The findings also suggested an increasing burden of T2DM in Nigeria with many persons currently undiagnosed, and few known cases on treatment.
However, challenges posed by diabetes are high and on the increase in the world, and in developing nation like Nigeria, mainly fueled by the increasing prevalence of unhealthy lifestyles. it has recorded many deaths due to many factors more especially lack of affordable healthcare and poor management of the disease.
Prince Don Ejiro who doubles as Chairman of Diabetes Association of Nigeria (DAN) FCT Chapter and National Public Relations Officer (PRO) has been in dilemma over the death of their members. He has the grim task of leading a group who desirously need urgent medical attention. Lamentation, agony, misery, sadness and sorrow have become a daily reality.
Prince speaking to Peoples Daily on the plight of People Living with the Diabetes in Abuja, Nigeria’s nation capital which he leads agonized over some of his members who are dying slowly due to lack of medication which has gone beyond the reach of most members owing to hard economy of the country.
Although, Ejiro’s voice was not yet a groundswell, but it is loud enough in its fact to warrant attention by the authorities and stakeholders as well. “The hardest is when you see your members struggling to manage the disease they didn’t create for themselves in the most difficult way. Be it feeding, medication and other things that are needed to keep life going.
“It is more heart breaking realizing they didn’t die their own death, but died due to lack of proper care. Died in their own land due to poor health condition. It is the most painful. It has degenerated to a situation where it is about death managing the patients. Honestly, if the dead could speak, they would curse the system that led to their death” he lamented.
Narrating the ordeals of his members, Ejiro said that managing diabetes is in different phases and should be managed well as it is a deadly disease.
“You must take your health seriously. Once you are confirmed to be diabetic, you start going regularly to hospital. You need money for transportation, consultation with personal doctor”.
He bemoaned the dearth of specialists that supposed to care for diabetic patients as a result of brain drain. “The doctors are not even around. You need a specialist and they are very few here as most have gone abroad in search of greener pasture.
“Government and other stakeholders need to intensify the campaigns. Patients are running after the doctors because they are very few. In a day, one doctor may be attending to 200 to 300 patients. Most of them have their private hospitals”.
Although, the World Health Organisation recommended a doctor: patient ratio of 1:600, but in Nigeria, the doctor to patient ratio is 1: 2753 which translates to 36.6 medical doctors per 100,000 persons.
Ejiro noted the high cost of managing diabetes is really heating patients hard and further pushing them into hardship. “When you go to hospital if diagnosed with the disease, you pay for card and consultation. On the day of the appointment, you will be made to pay little money if it were to be public hospital, but will pay more in private hospital.
“After thorough examination by the consultant, you will be requested to see a pharmacist. One of the major drugs is Lukovade and the cheapest you get to take you for one week is N8000 ($5). This is when you are not in insulin. If you were in type 1 diabetes, you will require to spend N30,000 ($20) for a week. It is compulsory and not negotiable” he said.
He said some patients will consume anything believing that their medication will solve it noting that Test kits and strips are like power house and but very expensive as it costs N40, 000 ($27).
Ejiro, almost crying appealed togovernment and stakeholders’ intervention to ameliorate the suffering of their members. “It is even more worrisome when you have other complications like malaria. That is why we are appealing to government to come to our aid to assist those who are living with diabetes. The cheapest of insulin is 25, 000 ($15) and can only last for three to four days. When affected, your feeding will change, you have to manage your sugar by taking large quantity of vegetable and it is very expensive in this part of the world”.
While positing that early screening is vital and should be encouraged, he informed that you hardly see one going for diabetes screening except recommended by a doctor when sick.
He blamed it on beliefs system and lack of awareness and sensitization making it possible for many to be diabetic without knowing. “You hardly see any Nigerian voluntarily going for screening. None of our members went to screening voluntarily. All of us got diagnosed when we were sick and visited the hospital. None of us walked freely to hospital to check if he or she is diabetic” he revealed.
Ejiro stressed the need for government to partner with some of the associations to subsidies drugs and kits saying it is better to deal with the patients directly through the association. He also urged government to encourage local content by making the manufacturing company come to Nigeria to establish with the aim of making the production cheap.
“Government should help us; we are dying. During the Covid-19 period, it was a disaster. The consequence of Covid-19 is still living with us. Many of our members died. The removal of fuel subsidy by Federal Government made everything to go higher. Most of the patients don’t have money to go to hospital. We just lost one three months ago. She was a petty trader and was managing both asthma, diabetes and hypertension. She died when she couldn’t raise money to buy inhaler”. Ejiro said, almost shivering.
“Some of our members have injuries, foot ulcer. Most of them that were placed on dialysis don’t stay more than one month after which they will die for lack of money to sustain medication and we raise burial money for them. We are tired of burying our members.
“To manage diabetes is not easy. It is pathetic. I had course to intervene personally, but how far could my little resources go. People should go for screening to enable early treatment and management, because the consequences that will come after is like a death penalty. To some of our members, the severe nature of their case seems to be like being on deathroll and death role is worse than death itself”.
Ejiro said that 70 percent of their members are retirees without any support from anywhere, which always disrupt medication progression. “If I tell you how death has been managing them, you will pity us. Every day we stand up to say a kind of prayer that has become a ritual in our association. Most of them cannot afford cost of medication. It is not diabetes that is killing them, but lack of money to sustain the medication. It becomes a death sentence when the country or community has failed you” he concluded, concealing his sadness behind a gentle smile.
However, a health worker, Terry Uwah said that the condition of diabetic patient is a fallout of the overburdened Nigeria Public Health sector which caters for almost 80% of the population.
He says it is common to see people leaving their houses as early as 06:00 AM to queue at a Health Centres and General Hospitals knowing full well that if don’t arrive early enough, there will be no personnel to attend to them.
Again, the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Mathew Verghis, at the launch of the October 2025 Nigeria Development Update titled, “From Policy to People: Bringing the Reform Gains Home.” disclosed that about 139 million out of estimated 230 million Nigerians are now living in poverty, warning that the country risks losing reform gains if they fail to translate into tangible improvements in people’s welfare.
Nigeria is clearly an unequal nation, with much of the country’s wealth concentrated in the hands of few. Unemployment, poverty levels are high and, on the increase, citizens who often live in poor conditions always blame the leadership for the problems they find themselves in.
Finally, the prevention and management of diabetes and associated complications is a huge challenge in Nigeria due to several issues and barriers, including lack of organized multisectoral approach, surveillance data, awareness campaign on diabetes, the risk it is associated with and complications, access to health care settings, access to affordable medicines and dearth of medical personnel due to brain drain factor.
Consequently, effective health promotion especially in rural areas, intensified campaign on health education, coordinated multisectoral collaboration and inclusive health policy that will incorporate those at the grassroots in terms of strengthened sensitization targeted at both, individual and population levels are what were needed to tackle and reduce diabetes epidemic and its complications.
