Lagos links 514 pharmacies to digital system
Lagos State Ministry of Health has digitised 514 private health providers and introduced community-based molecular tuberculosis (TB) diagnostics to strengthen disease surveillance and improve early detection of infections. The move
Lagos State Ministry of Health has digitised 514 private health providers and introduced community-based molecular tuberculosis (TB) diagnostics to strengthen disease surveillance and improve early detection of infections.
The move is part of efforts to curb malaria transmission and tackle gaps in TB diagnosis across the state’s health system.
At a health summit in Ikeja yesterday, Commissioner for Health, Akin Abayomi, said malaria test positivity in Lagos had stabilised at about five per cent, confirming the state as a low-transmission setting, while more than 66 per cent of tuberculosis cases remained undetected annually.
He said over 77,000 fever cases were tested across more than 500 facilities in 2025, using rapid diagnostic kits, with results showing about 95 per cent of fever cases in Lagos were not malaria.
He added that once mandatory testing before treatment was enforced, malaria positivity dropped below one per cent in March 2025 and remained between four and five per cent during peak periods.
According to him, the state expanded surveillance into the private sector, where over 60 per cent of residents sought care, by converting community pharmacies and Patent Medicine Vendors (PMV’s) into digitally-connected reporting centres, enabling more than 80,000 diagnostic tests.
On tuberculosis, Abayomi said Lagos accounted for about nine per cent of Nigeria’s TB burden, but only 3,565 of an estimated 6,038 cases were detected in the second quarter of 2025, leaving thousands of infections undiagnosed and sustaining transmission.
To address this, the state is deploying the PlusLife MiniDock, a portable molecular diagnostic platform, across its digital provider network to decentralise TB testing and improve case detection at community level.
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Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by Secretary to the State Government Abimbola Salu-Hundeyin, said government would prioritise disease surveillance and early testing, particularly for malaria and tuberculosis, which remained major public health concerns.
Health officials said the malaria digitisation initiative had been integrated into Lagos State Health Management Agency (LASHMA) system to ensure long-term funding and sustainability, while broader reforms included expansion of health infrastructure, digital health information systems and insurance coverage.
The event also featured the unveiling of a statewide TB diagnostic scale-up campaign tagged: ‘End TB Now’, aimed at improving early detection and treatment coverage.
Officials said the state was shifting from malaria control to elimination and from facility-based TB diagnosis to decentralised, technology-driven detection, ‘’although challenges remain in identifying undiagnosed tuberculosis cases and sustaining surveillance coverage.’’
