Isaac Olufadewa is a ONE Champion, medical doctor, and the executive director of Slum and Rural Health Initiative.  I vividly recall the fear in my 85-year-old grandmother’s voice when we talked in her living room about the novel coronavirus in early March. She was confused and didn’t understand  the COVID-19 pandemic. She was drowning in the overwhelming ocean of information largely in the world’s major languages such as English and French. As a medical doctor and adept communicator, I sat her...
COVID-19 has acted like a mirror of countries’ healthcare systems, revealing the vulnerabilities and pushing health systems to the brink. Worldwide over 3 million people have a confirmed case of COVID-19 and it has resulted in over 220,000 deaths. As countries balance the tightrope of a health, economic, and in some cases security crisis, everyone is asking: when will this pandemic be over? The answer is: when we have a vaccine or some effective remedies. However, when the vaccine is...
The ONE Campaign recently visited a primary healthcare center in Osun State to better understand the implementation of Huwe. ONE Campaign’s Innocent Edache describes the transformation and promise. “What would life be like without Huwe?” The question caused a pause in Mrs. Agunbiade, the warm, eager officer in charge at Ipole Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) in Atukumosa East Local Government Area of Osun State. Huwe is a government programme designed to provide a basic minimum package of health services to...
On February 28th, the Nigerian government confirmed the first case of coronavirus in Nigeria — marking the first case in sub-Saharan Africa. While health authorities at state and federal levels are taking action to isolate and contain the virus, this incident is a reminder that diseases do not recognize or respect borders, especially in our interconnected world, and strong, well-resourced healthcare systems are necessary for outbreak preparedness. Unfortunately, Nigeria’s public health system is under-resourced and overwhelmed, resulting in poor health...
Nigeria’s tech sector accounts for almost 10% of the nation’s GDP today. That’s up from less than 1% of GDP in 2001. Nigeria is Africa’s biggest technology market and accounts for 24% of internet users in Africa, with 123 million people online in June 2019. Nigeria’s tech sector has often found creative solutions to fill gaps left by the state. For example, large firms are delivering services in healthcare, agriculture and finance. Smaller firms are providing e-commerce platforms and other...
Humanity and urban disaster have a complicated history. However, as humans continue to grow and expand across new spheres, urban disasters and risks also become an issue worthy of attention. But advancements in technology, industrialization, and globalization have reignited humans’ commitment to safety and survival during natural disasters.  But extreme climate change has raised new debates on the survival of humans and animals across the globe during disasters. In many countries, storms, rising sea levels, drought, warming oceans, and flooding...