Govs adopt tool to track disease outbreak readiness

Nigeria's 36 states are set to enhance their readiness for infectious disease outbreaks and public health emergencies through a newly launched health security scorecard.

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At the Nigeria Governors’ Forum Secretariat, we firmly believe that true health security is built from the ground up. While national frameworks provide the architecture, subnational execution and accountability are the bedrock upon which epidemic preparedness, detection and response must rest.

The initiative, a collaboration between the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), the World Bank, and Resolve to Save Lives Nigeria, was unveiled at a workshop in Abuja. Health experts and development partners view the scorecard as a crucial tool for evaluating state-level health security systems and driving evidence-based interventions.

Dr. Ahmad Abdulwahab, Executive Director of Programme Partnership at the NGF Secretariat, stated that the scorecard establishes a unified framework for assessing health security governance. He emphasized that while national frameworks provide structure, subnational execution and accountability are fundamental for epidemic preparedness, detection, and response. The tool integrates key health security indicators to help governors monitor progress, identify weaknesses, and strengthen accountability.

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A core driver for our gathering today is the urgent need to establish a single, standardised health security governance assessment tool, the NGF Health Security Scorecard. By harmonising disparate metrics into one unified instrument, we can eliminate fragmentation, reduce reporting fatigue and provide state governors and policymakers with clear, actionable insights to strengthen health security accountability across all 36 states.

Dr. Nanlop Ogburuke of Resolve to Save Lives Nigeria highlighted the scorecard's importance in strengthening disease preparedness at the sub-national level. She stressed that effective health security relies on state capacities and informed policy decisions, which are essential for preventing and responding to outbreaks like cholera, Lassa fever, and Ebola.

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There is little that can be achieved without the states. Health security can only be effective when implemented at the sub-national level. If we strengthen state capacities and empower leaders to make informed policy and investment decisions, we will be better positioned to prevent and respond to outbreaks such as cholera, Lassa fever, Ebola and other infectious diseases.