The Lagos state government Tuesday lamented that the state has a shortage  of 30,000 medical doctors and 40,000 nurses that could have complemented those in the service of the state government. 

This was stated by the state Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi, while speaking during a ministerial press briefing in Alausa, Ikeja, as part of activities marking the seventh anniversary of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration.

He said malaria in the state declined from 15% in 2010 to 10% in 2015 but currently stands at 2% in 2025.

He added that the state requires about 40,000 medical doctors to adequately cater for its growing population but currently has only about 7,000 doctors in the system, leaving a deficit of more than 33,000 physicians.

Professor Abayomi stated that the state has succeeded in reducing malaria prevalence in the state to 2% malaria over the past 15 years.

He noted that despite the improvement, he warned that malaria remains a major public health threat because of the sheer size of Lagos population.

Abayomi mentioned policy reforms and improved diagnostic systems as factors responsible for reduction in malaria as well as advocacy on abstinence from unnecessary use of antimalarial drugs.

He said the reforms are helping to curb excessive medication and “sledgehammer polypharmacy,” while also improving accurate diagnosis and patient prognosis.

He added that the long-term objective is to reduce antimicrobial resistance across medicines used for parasites, bacterial infections and tuberculosis.