The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, has described public health practitioners as important players in policymaking in the health sector.
Abayomi stated this when he received the executives of the Association of Public Health Physicians of Nigeria, Lagos State branch, and members of its biennial scientific conference local organising committee.
He noted that inequities and social injustice were key problems in healthcare in Nigeria, especially at the grassroots, and encouraged members of the association to pursue policies and interventions that sought to address the challenges.
APHPN, in a statement titled, ‘APHPN Lagos State Branch Visit to the Honorable Commissioner for Health for Lagos State, Prof. Akin Abayomi,’ and signed by its Chairman, Dr Tolu Olufunlayo, and Pubic Relations Officer, Dr Blossom Maduafokwa, said the commissioner lamented the paucity of biosecurity laboratories in Africa as only one in Nigeria and one in South Africa, despite being a hotspot for emerging and re-emerging diseases.
“He also pointed out the lack of vaccine development and manufacturing facilities in Africa although the majority of vaccine-preventable diseases originate from this continent. In addition, he charged those with a global health focus to be revolutionary in their actions, noting that the fight required to break down inequities is never an easy one.
“He recognised the role that public health physicians should play in the area of influencing policy and stated that public health practitioners are vitally positioned to provide key data required in decision making for lawmakers,” the statement read in part.
Earlier, the Chairman of APHPN, Dr Tolu Olufunlayo, while thanking the commissioner for receiving the delegation, highlighted the association’s contributions in the area of risk communication during the COVID-pandemic.
Olufunlayo explained that the visit was to solicit his support for the association’s upcoming biennial conference and to explore avenues for further collaboration with the ministry.
