NCDC Rejects Proposed Establishment Of Public Health, Infectious Diseases Institute

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has opposed the proposed establishment of the National Institute for Public Health and Infectious Diseases in Zaria, Kaduna State.

The centre said it would amount to duplicating roles and entail additional public expenditure.

The director-general of NCDC, Dr Jide Idris, stated this at the public hearing on two bills organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Infectious Diseases in Abuja yesterday.

The proposed legislations are: Bills for the Acts to Establish the National Institute for Public Health and Infectious Diseases, for the Prevention, Research, Diagnosis, Control and Management of Infectious Diseases in Nigeria, and Make Provision for the Prevention of Tuberculosis-based Discrimination and Protect the Fundamental Human Rights and Dignity of People Living With and Affected by Tuberculosis.

Speaking specifically on the proposed Zaria institute, Dr Idris said the country has a legally established National Public Health institution – the NCDC and the new institute as presented substantially duplicates existing statutory functions.

He said the bill may create institutional conflicts, governance challenges, and avoidable financial burdens, adding that national health security will be better served by strengthening existing structures rather than establishing parallel institutions.

Idris insisted that available resources should be invested in expanding surveillance systems, laboratory capacity, workforce development, emergency preparedness and state-level public health capacity through existing national mechanisms.

The proposed National Institute for Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Zaria, seeks to perform functions that are already vested in the NCDC by law. The bill, therefore, raises significant concerns about duplication of mandates, institutional overlap, governance conflicts, and fiscal sustainability.

“HB 2629(the bill) in its current form attempts to create a parallel National Public Health Institute. Nigeria already has a globally recognised, fully functional statutory body for this exact purpose: the NCDC, established under the NCDC (Establishment) Act, 2018 (as amended).

“Creation of a parallel institution will weaken coordination. Public health emergencies require a single, clearly recognised national authority. Establishing another federal institution with overlapping responsibilities will create uncertainty regarding leadership, accountability, and operation during outbreaks and health emergencies,” he stated.

However, Dr Dalhatu Abdullahi Aminu, the acting chief executive of the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Training Centre, Zaria, the institution the proposed legislation seeks to upgrade to the Public Health, Infectious Diseases Institute, backed the bill.

Dr Aminu therefore urged lawmakers to fine-tune the proposed legislation to, amongst others, include the Emir of Zazzau as a member of the governing council of the Public Health, Infectious Diseases Institute, Zaria.

In his opening remarks, Speaker Abbas Tajudeen described the proposed institute as a strategic investment in Nigeria’s health security and preparedness against future disease outbreaks.

Represented by Hon. Bashir Zubair, the speaker said Nigeria’s experiences with Ebola, COVID-19, Lassa fever and other infectious disease outbreaks exposed significant vulnerabilities within the country’s health system and demonstrated the urgent need for stronger institutions capable of anticipating, preventing and responding effectively to emerging public health threats.

He stressed that a country of Nigeria’s population and strategic importance could no longer afford a reactive approach to disease outbreaks but must invest in scientific innovation, research, surveillance and sustainable preparedness.

According to Abbas, the proposed institute would provide a comprehensive framework for integrating disease prevention, surveillance, diagnosis, research, control, and management within a coordinated national system, while empowering Nigerian scientists to develop homegrown solutions to infectious diseases.

He maintained that the objective of the legislation was not simply to establish another government institution but to build a functional, agile and world-class institute capable of delivering measurable health outcomes for Nigerians and contributing to global public health.

In his welcome address, Chairman of the House Committee on Infectious Diseases, Hon. Amobi Godwin Ogah, said the public hearing was convened to receive memoranda from stakeholders on two important bills before the Committee.

Represented by Hon. Mark Esset, the committee chairman recalled that during an oversight visit to the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Training Centre in Saye, Zaria, in October 2025, members of the Committee discovered enormous but underutilised human and infrastructural capacity at the facility.

He said the visit inspired the Committee’s recommendation to upgrade the centre into a national public health institute and also informed the decision to broaden the Committee’s mandate by changing its name from the House Committee on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Control to the House Committee on Infectious Diseases.

The lawmaker disclosed that the Presidency had already approved the upgrade of the Zaria training centre into a public institute and expressed optimism that the proposed legislation would significantly strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to prevent, diagnose, treat and manage infectious diseases.

On the proposed Tuberculosis Anti-Discrimination Bill, Ogah said the legislation seeks to protect the rights and dignity of persons living with or affected by tuberculosis, eliminate stigma and discrimination and encourage early testing, diagnosis and treatment as part of efforts to reduce the burden of the disease in Nigeria.