PREMIUM TIMES’ 2025 investigations identify the gaps, failures in Nigeria’s health sector

(Mariam Ileyemi, Fortune Eronmosele, Oluwakemi Adelagun and Zainab Adewale)

In 2025, PREMIUM TIMES published a series of investigations and in-depth reports that exposed the failures and challenges across Nigeria’s health sector. From poorly equipped primary healthcare centres where women and babies died during childbirth, to communities poisoned by industrial pollution, these stories documented how policy gaps, weak funding, and poor oversight continue to cost lives.

Some of these reports prompted government action, including emergency declarations, regulatory sanctions, and public health interventions. Others revealed crises that persist, from child malnutrition and displacement-related health risks to exclusion of vulnerable groups such as persons with disabilities, inmates, and people living with rare conditions.

These 20 investigations capture Nigeria’s most pressing health challenges in 2025, showing how governance failures, conflict, poverty, climate change, and inequality shape health outcomes, and how ordinary Nigerians bear the consequences when systems fail.

When investigation forces action

In one investigation, PREMIUM TIMES reported how pregnant women and newborns were dying in rural communities across Akwa Ibom State because primary healthcare centres lacked electricity, essential drugs, skilled health workers and functional referral systems.

These facilities, often the only option available, failed women during labour when complications arose. The report traced the problem beyond infrastructure decay. Budget documents and project records showed that billions of naira had been allocated to healthcare, yet frontline facilities remained neglected. Clinics were dilapidated, ambulances absent, and health workers overstretched.

Following publication, the Akwa Ibom State government declared a state of emergency in the health sector. The announcement followed widespread attention generated by the report and renewed scrutiny of health spending and service delivery.

Another investigation with immediate impact exposed widespread lead poisoning in Ogijo, Ogun State, linked to crude battery recycling operations. Residents, including children, were found to have dangerously high levels of lead in their blood, in many cases far above World Health Organisation (WHO) safety limits.

The investigation documented how toxic dust from battery recycling factories settled on homes, farms and classrooms. Workers handled batteries without protective gear, while slag heaps contaminated soil and water.

After publication, the factories involved were shut, the Ogun State government suspended three environmental consultancy firms connected to the recycling operations, and announced free blood lead testing for residents.

Maternal, Women’s Health

In another report, PREMIUM TIMES documented how conflict-driven displacement in Benue State turned childbirth into a life-threatening ordeal. Pregnant women living in camps and host communities often went into labour without antenatal care or access to skilled medical support.

Health facilities serving displaced populations lacked trained staff, equipment and emergency referral capacity. The report revealed how displacement quietly erodes maternal health, compounding the trauma of conflict with preventable medical risks that remain overlooked in humanitarian responses.

Climate vulnerability emerged as another driver of maternal risk. Our report highlighted how heavy rainfall routinely cuts off access to health facilities in flood-prone Lagos communities, trapping women in labour.

Women delivered babies in flooded rooms, boats and temporary shelters, exposed to contaminated water and unsanitary conditions. The report revealed how communities already excluded from adequate services are pushed further into risk when climate events overwhelm fragile infrastructure.

Another investigation examined maternal and neonatal deaths in underserved Lagos communities, including riverine and informal settlements. Despite the state’s advanced hospitals, many residents lived far from functional primary healthcare services. By focusing on these communities, the story exposed how urban development has failed to include health equity.

It showed that proximity to wealth and infrastructure does not automatically guarantee access to lifesaving care, particularly for low-income populations.

In rural Niger State, another report spotlighted women living with obstetric fistula after prolonged labour without timely medical intervention. Many laboured for days at home or in poorly equipped centres, unable to handle complications.

By the time some women reached referral hospitals, irreversible damage had occurred. Beyond physical injury, they faced stigma, isolation and loss of livelihoods. The report showed how weak referral systems and geographic barriers allow a preventable injury to persist.

Also, a story on infertility examined how Nigerian women carry the social and emotional burden of childlessness in a society that often defines womanhood by motherhood. The report showed how stigma turns infertility into a public judgement, affecting women’s mental health, marriages and social standing.

The report also revealed how stigma and limited access to affordable fertility care push many women away from proper medical help.

Another report showed how flexible work arrangements are allowing more Nigerian men to attend antenatal care with their partners, challenging the idea that pregnancy is solely a woman’s responsibility. The story gained international attention after being republished by Courrier International.

Malnutrition, hunger and conflict

In Benue State, conflict also fueled a child malnutrition crisis. In one camp alone, hundreds of children under five were reported to be malnourished. Families displaced by violence struggled to access food, healthcare and livelihoods.

The report showed how malnutrition threatens children’s physical and cognitive development, deepening cycles of poverty and exposing gaps in humanitarian and health responses.

In Kano State, a story highlighted how rising food prices pushed thousands of families into a nutritional crisis. Parents could not afford balanced meals, leading to increased malnutrition among children under five.

This report exposes the impact of economic hardship on children’s health in Nigeria. Malnutrition can lead to stunted growth, cognitive impairment, and increased mortality. The situation reveals weaknesses in Nigeria’s social safety nets and food security policies.

The story highlights the need for urgent action to address food prices and support vulnerable families. It also underscores the importance of investing in nutrition programmes to prevent long-term damage to children’s health

In Adamawa State, families displaced by Boko Haram faced starvation even after resettlement. Without food, livelihoods or services, malnutrition and illness spread.

The story emphasises the crucial need for coordinated humanitarian responses to complex crises, highlighting the importance of investing in sustainable solutions for displaced families, particularly in areas like food security and livelihood support.

Health systems under strain

In border communities of Ogun State, residents routinely crossed into the neighbouring Republic of Benin to access basic healthcare, as the available PHCs were inadequate, understaffed, and unreliable.

The report followed a pregnant woman who delivered quadruplets without antenatal care and had to seek emergency treatment across the border. The story showed how failing primary care pushes families into costly alternatives, and how cross-border care cannot replace domestic health systems.

In Bauchi State, PREMIUM TIMES documented how funding priorities favoured political projects over primary healthcare. Rural communities lacked functional clinics, while existing facilities were dilapidated and under-resourced.

Children and adults suffered worsening illnesses because basic services were unavailable. The investigation exposed chronic misalignment between policy promises and actual spending.

In Bayelsa State, lawmakers approved millions for foreign medical trips while rural PHCs remained abandoned. Women delivered babies without doctors or electricity; children died from treatable illnesses. This revealed governance failure and a lack of confidence in Nigeria’s health system.

In Jigawa State, chronic underfunding left rural health centres empty or locked. Women travelled long distances or gave birth at home. Newborns died from preventable causes. The report showed that weak implementation is associated with high mortality.

Vulnerable populations

A report showed how persons with disabilities in Kano faced inaccessible facilities, discrimination and lack of targeted services. Many delayed or avoided care entirely. Women with disabilities faced heightened pregnancy risks, while children missed immunisations.

A report on Nigerian prisons showed how female inmates lacked sanitary pads, clean water and proper toilets. Women used rags, blankets and mattress stuffing during menstruation, risking infection and humiliation. The report highlighted gender-specific neglect in correctional health services.

Environmental, preventable health crises

In major cities like Lagos and Kano, outbreaks of preventable diseases such as cholera and diphtheria continued to claim lives. Poor sanitation, overcrowding and low vaccination coverage allowed illnesses to spread silently. The report showed how weak surveillance and prevention undermine urban health.

Despite billions budgeted, many Lagos Island residents lacked access to clean water. Families relied on contaminated boreholes, leading to skin infections and illness. Funds allocated for water infrastructure were often not released, leaving basic access to water a public health threat.

Another report revealed report revealed alarmingly high rates of skin cancer among persons with albinism due to poor awareness, late diagnosis and unaffordable treatment. Free care programmes had been discontinued in some centres.

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What these stories leave behind

These health investigations in 2025 highlight the lives behind the statistics. Women, children, displaced families, persons with disabilities, prisoners, and marginalised communities all faced preventable health risks.

These reports remind policymakers, health authorities, and civil society that sustained and accountable action is needed to prevent further loss of life and to ensure access to safe, equitable healthcare for all Nigerians.