Nigeria accounts for 40% global fistula burden — Expert

•FG moves to prevent spread, offers free treatment 

By Ozioruva Aliu

BENIN CITY—The Medical Director of the newly established National Obstetric Fistula Centre, NOFIC, Benin City, Prof. Ileogben Sunday-Adeoye, has said Nigeria currently accounts for 40 per cent of the global burden of obstetric fistula.

Sunday-Adeoye stated this yesterday while speaking on the 2026 International Day to End Obstetric Fistula themed: “Her Health is a Right: Invest to End Fistula and Childbirth Injuries.”

In a statement issued by the Team Lead, Corporate Affairs of the centre, Mrs Yolanda Iyere, the medical expert said the condition was more prevalent in Northern Nigeria than in the South.

He, however, noted that the Federal Government had adopted strategies aimed at preventing new cases and providing free treatment for existing obstetric fistula patients.

According to him, the strategy is a two-pronged approach designed to halt the influx of new obstetric fistula cases while ensuring surgery and post-surgical care for affected patients.

He also disclosed that the United Nations had set 2030 as the target year to eradicate obstetric fistula globally.

Sunday-Adeoye stressed the need to protect and promote the health of women, given their central role in the family and society.

He said: “The health of women is a right that requires the attention of both the family and society.

“Four National Obstetric Fistula Centres have been established across the country by the Federal Government as part of efforts to tackle the scourge, with the NOFIC Benin Centre serving the South-South geo-political zone and adjoining states.”

The medical director decried the stigmatisation and ostracisation associated with obstetric fistula, particularly from family members, friends and society at large.

He said anything capable of diminishing the dignity of womanhood should be collectively addressed.

Describing obstetric fistula as a childbirth injury, Sunday-Adeoye said the condition was characterised by uncontrollable leakage of urine and faeces through the vagina.

He listed the complications associated with the condition to include inability to control urine flow, passage of faeces with persistent odour, nerve injuries, infertility, kidney and skin diseases, mental health challenges, loss of self-esteem, economic dependency, marital disharmony and separation.

According to him, the condition also comes with severe social consequences, including stigmatisation and isolation from family and society.

Meanwhile, as part of activities marking the 2026 International Day to End Obstetric Fistula, the statement said the NOFIC, in collaboration with the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Edo State Council, would today hold a one-day free medical outreach for members of the union.

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