Africa’s sports tourism gold rush is happening now and Uganda is winning

What happens when a country discovers it has what the entire continent needs, but hasn’t yet realised the full value of what it’s sitting on?

Last year, I watched a group of Norwegian distance runners complete a training session at 2,000 metres above sea level in southwestern Uganda. They were not there by accident. I believe they chose Uganda because they understood something the rest of the continent is still catching up on, which is Uganda not trying to be a sports tourism destination; rather, we are becoming the one that simply works.

The global sports tourism market moves where results happen, where infrastructure meets authenticity, where cost and quality align in ways competitors can’t replicate. Uganda’s advantage isn’t singular; it’s systemic.

Our geography is superb for training: our highlands offer the altitude sweet spot that builds aerobic capacity without the extreme conditions that injure athletes.

But geography alone doesn’t win markets.

What wins markets is when geography meets hospitality, meets infrastructure, meets a government that understands the difference between having a resource and actually monetizing it.

The Rwenzori Marathon proves this. What started as a niche ultra-running event has evolved into something larger, a magnet for serious endurance athletes from across the globe who come not just for the race, but for the training window beforehand. They stay longer, spend more, and most importantly, they tell other athletes.

This is how destination markets are built. Not through one-off spectacle, but through recurring pilgrimage.

Uganda delivers comparable or superior facilities for $60-$120. That’s economic leverage.

A team of 20 athletes training for three months represents nearly $200,000 in direct spending plus indirect economic activity through hospitality, restaurants, transportation, and services.

Scale this across dozens of teams, dozens of sports disciplines, and suddenly we’re talking about a revenue stream that rivals traditional tourism segments but requires fundamentally different marketing strategies.

But here’s what excites me more than the numbers. 2027, Uganda is co-hosting Afcon.

That’s not just a football tournament. That’s 73 matches. That’s one million tourists descending on our infrastructure.

That’s the world watching how Uganda runs a continental event. We have a three-year runway to position ourselves as a sports destination that can deliver at continental and international scale. Afcon isn’t an endpoint. It’s a launchpad.

Think strategically about what happens after Afcon. The world will have seen our stadiums, our security, our hospitality capacity, our organisational competence. Teams will have established relationships with our facilities, our hotels, our transport networks.

Athletes competing in 2027 will have experienced Uganda at its most visible moment.

That awareness, that confidence, becomes the foundation for the next phase – hence positioning Uganda as the go-to destination for serious athletes across every sport discipline.

This requires intentionality.

We need targeted investment in specialised facilities that become magnets for specific sports. We need partnerships with sports science institutions that position Uganda as intellectually credible, not just geographically convenient. We need to recruit the coaches, facilities managers, and sports medicine professionals who transform casual visits into deliberate destination choices.

The window is open. But windows close.

The athletes are already coming. The demand is real. Afcon is coming. The question is whether we’ll move fast enough to own this market before others realise what we have.

KASU Management Begs ASUU to Suspend Strike

The management of Kaduna State University (KASU) has appealed to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), KASU Branch, to suspend its ongoing warning strike and give room for dialogue with the Kaduna State Government to resolve the issues in dispute.

The university management made the appeal in a statement signed by its Vice-Chancellor, Professor Abdullahi Ibrahim Musa, on Friday.

It said the intervention of Governor Uba Sani, who is also the Visitor to the university, had created an opportunity for the government, management and unions to address the concerns raised by academic staff.

According to the statement, the governor had constituted a nine-member committee chaired by the Commissioner for Education, Professor Abubakar Sani Sambo, to engage with the issues and make appropriate recommendations within one month.

‘Management urges ASUU-KASU to give the ongoing dialogue every opportunity to succeed and to reconsider the suspension of the warning strike, particularly in view of the concrete steps already being taken by the Kaduna State Government to address the issues under discussion,’ it said.

The university said it understood the concerns of its academic staff as well as the anxiety among students and parents over the disruption of academic activities.

It said many students had travelled from different parts of Kaduna State and other parts of the country to pursue their education at the institution, stressing that any interruption to the academic calendar would affect their studies, families and future plans.

‘Every interruption to the academic calendar affects their studies, their families and their plans for the future,’ the management said.

It commended Governor Sani for engaging with the concerns affecting the university and taking what it described as practical steps towards finding lasting solutions.

The management also pledged to continue engaging government and university unions while prioritising the welfare of staff and students.

‘We will continue to communicate honestly with Government, engage sincerely with our unions, and place the welfare of our staff and students at the centre of our decisions,’ it said.

The university appealed to students and parents to remain patient, assuring them that efforts were being made to achieve an early resolution and restore normal academic activities.

The statement came amid the warning strike by ASUU-KASU over unresolved issues affecting the institution and its academic staff.

Cleric wants women to confront challenges, defy odds

Chief Executive and National Chief Imam of Al Habibiya Islamic Society (AIS), Fuhad Adeyemi, has urged women not to be deterred by the challenges they may encounter in life, but rather confront such by defying the odds to reach their desired goals.

Imam Adeyemi gave the advice at the presentation of two books: ‘Unstoppable Ovai: A True Life Story of Resilience in Education’ and ‘My Prophet’s Way of Life: Noble Character for Children to Emulate,’ written by Hajiya Halima Salawu Obomi, which also coincided with her birthday and retirement from the civil service.

Represented by Ambassador Ridhwan Adebayo Mustapha, the cleric said the author’s story in, ‘Unstoppable Ovai: A True Life Story of Resilience in Education’ revealed what women can become when they defy all odds that could be stumbling blocks on their way to the top.

He particularly charged young women and girls to see Hajiya Obomi’s career progression as an encouragement to face their personal, educational and professional lives, adding that difficult circumstances should not in anyway prevent anyone from pursuing greater heights.

‘What she has done is a challenge to all women not to give up on themselves, but strive for greater heights in whatever situation they find themselves,’ he said.

Commenting on the second book: ‘My Prophet’s Way of Life: Noble Character for Children to Emulate’ Adeyemi said the publication will promote good character, reduce corruption and curb other social vices in society, as it also addressed fundamental issues relating to family, community and the society at large.

He added: ‘If we can get this book read by our children, it may not happen in our own lifetime, but the children that are coming will be more behaved. All these evil things happening in our society will be reduced and everybody will live in peace.’

Also speaking, Professor Abdulhamid Suleiman, urged young women to remain committed to learning and self development irrespective of their background or any obstacles they may pass through.

According to the don, the author’s journey from a humble background to a successful professional career demonstrated the importance of determination, education and perseverance.

The author, in her remarks, charged young people to remain hardworking and be committed to making positive contributions to society while adding that her personal experiences inspired her to write the books, with the hope that her story would motivate younger generations and help them overcome difficult circumstances.

‘People should be hardworking. Even if the money is not there, the reward is there, here or thereafter. You should put all your efforts into making sure that you do your own best in life.

‘I thought of the younger ones, that my story is something that can change their lives too. So I decided to put it out there so that the children can learn, the youth can learn and move on with life. There’s no condition that is permanent,’ Hajiya Obomi said.

The occasion was attended by family members, friends, colleagues who extolled the virtues of the author as she called it quit with public service and opened another chapter of her life in retirement.

PCN seals 430 medicine outlets, says 50% operating illegally in Yobe

The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has sealed 430 pharmaceutical premises in Yobe State following a four-day enforcement operation across 10 local government areas of the state.

The council said 300 of the sealed premises were unregistered and illegal outlets, while 110 were Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendor (PPMV) stores and 20 were pharmacies.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday in Damaturu, the Head of Department, Enforcement, PCN, Suleiman Chiroma, said the enforcement team inspected 601 premises across Damaturu, Jakusko, Potiskum, Fika, Fune, Nguru, Nangere, Bade, Karasuwa and Machina local government areas.

He said the premises comprised 34 pharmacies, 267 patent medicine stores and 300 unregistered or illegal outlets.

‘Of the 601 premises inspected during the exercise, 50 per cent were found to be operating illegally,’ Chiroma said.

He added that 21 compliance directives were also issued to operators found to have breached regulatory requirements.

According to him, all 300 illegal premises identified during the exercise were sealed in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Chiroma said the high number of illegal outlets operating across the state underscored the need for the council to intensify its regulatory activities in Yobe.

He said illegal premises accounted for 70 per cent of all facilities sealed for one or more regulatory breaches.

‘Among licensed operators, only 41 per cent of the pharmacies inspected were in full compliance with regulatory standards, thus the need to enhance monitoring.

‘In comparison, 63 per cent of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendor outlets were found to be compliant,’ he said.

The PCN enforcement chief said another major concern uncovered during the exercise was the low number of pharmacies in the state.

He said only 34, representing about six per cent of the 601 premises visited, were pharmacies.

‘This statistic reflects the low level of pharmaceutical care and services in the state, a situation that could undermine the goal of ensuring access to quality medicines for all citizens,’ he said.

Chiroma said the enforcement exercise was carried out pursuant to a directive by the Registrar of the council, Pharm. Ibrahim Babashehu Ahmed, to enforce relevant provisions of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria Establishment Act 2022.

He said the exercise was aimed at ensuring the provision of and access to safe pharmaceutical services in line with the National Drug Policy.

According to him, the PCN is mandated to regulate the education, training and practice of pharmacy, register pharmacists and pharmaceutical premises, inspect facilities and enforce compliance with professional and ethical standards.

He said the council also ensures that facilities involved in the handling, storage, distribution, importation, manufacturing and dispensing of medicines and medical devices comply with extant laws and regulations.

Chiroma said the enforcement was also part of efforts to implement the National Drug Distribution Guidelines, whose objectives include reducing adulterated and falsified medicines in circulation, eliminating the dominance of unregulated drug markets and strengthening oversight of pharmaceutical distribution.

He said the breaches identified during the exercise included operating without valid PCN licences, poor storage conditions, unauthorised access to controlled medicines and the training of apprentices.

‘These practices, if not checked, pose a danger to public health and constitute risks to national security through the potential diversion of controlled medicines into criminal networks and unhealthy populations,’ he said.

He warned that dispensing medicines by unqualified persons and improper handling and storage of medicines could contribute to treatment failure, drug abuse and misuse, antimicrobial resistance and avoidable deaths.

‘These outcomes invariably increase the cost of care for patients and erode public confidence in the health system,’ Chiroma said.

He said the council would continue to subject all premises involved in the handling, storage and dispensing of medicines to rigorous and continuous regulatory oversight.

‘Any breach of extant regulations will attract prompt and decisive enforcement action by the council,’ he warned.

Chiroma urged members of the public to obtain medicines only from premises licensed by the PCN, stressing that valid licences must be prominently displayed at the facilities.

He said the council appreciated the cooperation of the people of Yobe State during the enforcement exercise and called for continued collaboration to ensure sustained access to safe, effective and quality-assured medicines.

He said the enforcement exercise was in line with the commitment of the Registrar, Pharm. Ibrahim Babashehu Ahmed, to support universal health coverage and the Federal Government’s health priorities through improved access to safe, potent, efficacious, quality-assured and affordable medicines and medical devices.

Individual responsibility should become a social norm

Uganda will observe its second National General Cleaning Day, an initiative aimed at improving sanitation, public health, waste management, and general cleanliness. Communities are expected to participate in cleaning homes, roads, streets, markets, drainage channels and other public spaces.

Similar initiatives exist in countries such as Rwanda, Japan, and France. While the initiative is well-intentioned, its success will depend not only on mobilising citizens to clean but also on whether government establishes the systems necessary to sustain cleanliness beyond a single day.

Under the current arrangement, movement is restricted from 7am to 10am, while businesses and places of worship are expected to close during the exercise. Although these measures may encourage participation, they raise concerns about economic costs, enforcement, and sustainability.

The previous cleaning exercise appeared to generate mixed levels of public enthusiasm, with reports of arrests. While enforcement can achieve short-term participation, it may not necessarily create a genuine culture of willingness and individual responsibility.

For low-income households, particularly those whose livelihoods depend on daily earnings, losing productive hours can impose a disproportionate economic burden, highlighting the need to balance public sanitation objectives with citizens’ economic realities.

Without adequate garbage collection equipment, storage facilities, transportation, recycling systems, and properly managed disposal sites, cleaning exercises may simply shift waste from hidden areas to drainage channels, creating further sanitation problems.

The Kiteezi landfill tragedy, which claimed more lives, demonstrates the consequences of inadequate waste-management infrastructure. Kampala and other urban authorities continue to face significant challenges in establishing sustainable waste collection, disposal, recycling, and management systems.

The concept of individual responsibility carried out collectively offers an important way of thinking about Uganda’s cleaning initiative.

In societies with strong civic cultures, individuals often take responsibility for their immediate surroundings without requiring constant government enforcement. Government provides the systems, infrastructure, standards, and public education, while citizens contribute through daily responsible behaviour.

Japanese spectators cleaning stadiums after matches in the World Cup games in the USA demonstrate how individual responsibility can become a collective social norm. Uganda can cultivate a similar culture.

Government should take greater responsibility for providing waste bins, collection equipment, transportation, disposal facilities, recycling systems, and public education.

Once these systems are functioning effectively, citizens can assume greater responsibility for maintaining clean surroundings from a government-enforced activity into a shared civic responsibility.

Rwanda provides another useful regional example. The exercise demonstrates that community cleaning can become an opportunity not only to improve sanitation but also to discuss wider community challenges, including security, infrastructure, and social welfare.

Rwanda’s household-level demographic data and legal penalties provide a model for improving participation, accountability, and effective implementation.

However, Uganda could complement enforcement with incentives and recognition to encourage participation, gradually transforming the exercise from a mandatory activity into a widely accepted social norm and, ultimately, a lasting culture.

National cleaning days should not become isolated events but catalysts for a lasting culture of responsible waste management.

Government should promote household-level waste separation, clearly labelled collection points, recycling industries, waste-to-energy technologies, and stronger regulation of disposal by households, businesses, and institutions.

Most importantly, sustained public education and behavioural-change campaigns should begin at household and school levels to encourage responsible waste practices.

The paradox is that individual actions can produce collective outcomes only when supported by effective institutions and shared social norms.

Government must provide the infrastructure while citizens must assume responsibility for their individual contribution to the public good. A clean environment is a shared public good and a shared civic responsibility.

Cameroon end D’Tigers’ winning run in World Cup Qualifiers

Nigeria’s D’Tigers suffered their second defeat of the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup African qualifiers after losing 78-62 to Cameroon in Rades, Tunisia.

The defeat ended Nigeria’s three-game winning streak after David Fizdale’s side had swept their previous qualifying window to revive their World Cup hopes.

Cameroon controlled three of the four quarters, with Yves Missi proving particularly difficult for the Nigerian defence. He finished with a game-high 24 points and nine rebounds.

Nigeria struggled with their shooting, converting 33.3 per cent of their two-point attempts compared with Cameroon’s 50 per cent.

The Nigerians were also behind from three-point range, 17.8 per cent to Cameroon’s 27.6, while Cameroon converted 74.1 per cent of their free throws compared with Nigeria’s 66.7 per cent.

Caleb Agada led D’Tigers with 13 points, while Efe Abogidi added 12. Josh Okogie grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.

Nigeria have 11 points from four wins and two defeats and remain fourth in Group E.

South Sudan defeated Guinea 81-71 to move to 12 points, one behind leaders Cameroon.

D’Tigers will return to action against Guinea today, at 1pm in another important qualifier.

The top two teams in each group, alongside the best third-placed side across the two groups, will qualify for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar.

Govt in fresh plan to print money locally

The government has tapped a familiar foreign currency-printing firm to establish a secure mint for producing physical banknotes, reinforcing Uganda’s sovereignty in a contentious multi-billion-dollar deal that has resurrected the ghosts of past endeavours.

The home-based currency-printing project returns precisely four years and seven months after the passing of former Central Bank Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile, who valiantly opposed the government’s plan for a money-printing facility in Uganda, citing security concerns.

On Wednesday, the President’s Office witnessed the signing of a multi-billion deal between Uganda Security Printing Company (USPC) and Germany-based global currency-printing giant KandB Banknote Solutions.

The deal sets in motion what Presidency Minister Milly Babalanda called ‘the project to establish a sovereign currency printing facility in Uganda.’

She welcomed KandB Solutions to Uganda and expressed gratitude for the start of Uganda’s journey in collaboration for the establishment of a currency printing facility in the country.

‘As we begin on this journey, we expect the MoU to provide a framework for the technical, security, feasibility and commercial work that will guide Uganda towards the final establishment of the printing plant,’ Ms Babalanda said in a statement released on the same day.

President’s vision

The minister confirmed that the project directly supports the long-standing vision of President Yoweri Museveni, based on three important principles: national sovereignty, value addition and capacity building. She also made it clear to the critics that ‘we are not simply installing machines; we are building a national capability.’

Explaining the President’s vision of an independent nation, the minister maintained that

‘Uganda should have the ability to produce important instruments of the State locally, including currency, passports, national identity cards, and academic certificates.’

Article 161 of the 1995 Constitution and Section 20 of the Bank of Uganda Act establish the Bank of Uganda as the central bank with the exclusive authority to issue national currency. It is unclear whether BoU Governor Michael Atingi-Ego and Finance Minister Henry Musaasizi were consulted prior to the government’s finalisation of the MoU with KandB Banknote Solutions.

Governor’s take

In response to inquiries about the deal that seeks to print money locally and its effects on Uganda’s economy, Mr. Musaasizi told this publication yesterday that the issue falls under the Presidency and did not provide further details on the matter.

Responding to the same queries yesterday, the BoU governor told this publication that he had no knowledge of the new proposal for a money-printing factory in Uganda and refrained from commenting on the matter.

Ms Ishta Atukunda, the media section lead at the BoU, confirmed via email yesterday that they received this publication’s inquiry regarding the economic implications of the MoU with KandB Banknotes Solutions and assured that a response will be forthcoming.

Mutebile’s objection

The government’s initiative to set up a money-printing facility in Uganda encountered considerable resistance in the 10th Parliament.

After almost three years of discussions, a security printing agreement was finally reached with the German firm, Veridos Identity Solutions Group. However, persistent disagreements between BoU and the Ministry of Finance officials ultimately forced the government to exclude any plans for money printing.

During most closed-door meetings at the State House and Parliament, Mutebile was unswerving and raised concerns that printing money in Uganda might jeopardise the security of the nation’s currency as a result of ‘incidents of leakages of printing material or knowledge to counterfeiters.’

Although the President, Mr Kasaija, and the then Attorney General William Byaruhanga wanted the currency printed in Uganda to cut costs, Mr Mutebile warned that establishing a currency printing factory in Uganda would plunge the country into problems and that such a factory would be ‘questionable’ and cited lack of capacity.

While the late BoU governor rejected the proposal, Mr Kasaija, in a letter dated October 20, 2017, had made it clear to him that ‘His Excellency, the President guided that Veridos Identity Solutions (GMBH) should also be tasked to print currency in the country’ and that the company had confirmed that it would be in a position to print currency in the country.

Currency production

However, Mr Mutebile insisted that the current suppliers of the country’s banknotes [ De La Rue plc] had extensive experience and capacity and were economically sound and reputable. He also warned those peddling the money printing deal that ‘banknote printing is a very specialised activity that is complex, with high quality and security sensitivity, which a handful of reputable currency printers undertake in the world.’

For more than 50 years, Uganda’s currency has traditionally been produced by the British company De La Rue, in collaboration with various international firms, including Giesecke+Devrient (G+D), a global security technology company headquartered in Munich, Germany, and France’s Oberthur Fiduciaire.

Sources close to the initial deal told this publicationthat undisclosed government officials in the Ministry of Finance had convinced the President that establishing a currency factory in Uganda would cost the taxpayers in excess of $80m (about Shs296.5 billion ). However, officials from the Bank of Uganda and some technocrats from the Finance Ministry put the cost at less than $20m (about Shs74.1 billion).

Economists’ views

Mr Fred Muhumuza (PhD), a notable economist and policy advisor with over 20 years of experience in economic development and governance, spoke of a complex deal trapped in protracted discussions.

‘It has been a long discussion. My worry is, it might be abused [ and when that happens] it can be inflationary.’

The Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Mr Joel Ssenyonyi, opposed the plan and warned the government against ‘putting the cart before the horse’.

He explained that any attempts to bet on establishing a sensitive money-printing factory before ‘draining the swamp’ would be akin to ‘making a hyena the custodian of the meat store.’

‘It’s extremely dangerous to print money in Uganda where corruption is all over the place,’ Mr Ssenyonyi told this publication in an interview yesterday.

‘We have people digging fake graves and planting fake houses in project-areas to siphon money from the government; we have thieves in public and private offices. They are all over the place and the same thieves will eventually break into the currency factory and disorganise the economy.’

Other knowledgeable bureaucrats in the Ministry of Finance and BoU, who didn’t want to be named to speak freely, explained that an economy with increased circulation of stolen money leads to inflation, lower interest rates, and heightened economic growth, while inflation erodes money’s purchasing power, raising the cost of goods and services over time.

Govt defends the deal

The minister, however, clarified that as the government moves towards the final agreement with KandB Banknote Solutions, ‘we expect skills transfer to be a central part of the partnership. Our Ugandan engineers and technicians must be involved from the beginning. They should work alongside specialists during the planning, installation, testing and commissioning and gain the practical skills needed to operate and maintain the facility.’

She revealed that the Office of the President and USPC will establish a multi-sectoral technical committee that brings together key stakeholders, including the BoU, the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, the Attorney General’s Chambers, and the relevant security agencies, to establish a formal monitoring arrangement to ensure that progress is regularly measured against the agreed roadmap milestones.

USPC is a Joint Venture company where the Uganda Printing and Publishing Corporation (UPPC) holds a 51 percent stake, making the government the majority shareholder alongside the German Consortium of Veridos GmbH and G+D GmbH, which collectively own 49 percent.

Discounting the fears, the minister maintained that the deal is aligned with the NRM Manifesto 2026-2031, which emphasises the importance of industrialisation, production, and economic transformation.

‘By focusing on local security printing, we are engaging in a high-tech, skills-intensive manufacturing process that supports these goals,’ he said.

That it also consistent with Uganda Vision 2040 and reflects the objectives of the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP IV), specifically in terms of sustainable industrialisation, job creation, wealth generation, and advancements in science, technology, and innovation.

Man rescued after jumping off bridge in Plateau

A middle-aged man was rescued on Friday after reportedly jumping into the water from the British American Bridge in Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State.

The incident attracted the attention of passers-by, who raised the alarm and mobilised to rescue the man from the water.

An eyewitness, Mr Amos Forte, who was passing through the area at the time, said the man walked towards the bridge at around 1pm on Friday afternoon before jumping into the water.

‘Several persons raised the alarm and he was eventually rescued,’ Forte told journalists.

Forte explained that the rescue operation was carried out quickly by people around the bridge, who worked together to get the man out of the water.

He added that the man appeared to have sustained injuries during the incident and was immediately taken away for medical attention.

Forte added that security operatives later visited the scene following the incident.

ICYMI: NSC endorses Ikpeme as interim NFF General Secretary

The National Sports Commission (NSC) has endorsed Dr Emmanuel Ikpeme as interim General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) following the resignation of President Ibrahim Musa Gusau, General Secretary Dr Mohammed Sanusi and members of the federation’s Executive Committee.

Ikpeme, who was previously the NFF’s Deputy General Secretary, will oversee the federation’s secretariat during the transition, while Dr Ademola Olajire, the former Director of Media and Communications, has been appointed interim Deputy General Secretary.

The appointments are part of interim measures introduced as the Federal Government begins a comprehensive reform of Nigerian football following the resignation of the NFF leadership.

NFF election suspended

The NFF has also suspended all processes leading to its Elective Congress scheduled for September 27 in Lafia, Nasarawa State.

The federation said a fresh electoral process would begin after the completion of the proposed reforms, which will be undertaken in consultation with FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Diphtheria: Kano gov’t disputes claim of 50 deaths, says only 2 recorded in Rano

The Kano State Government has refuted claims by a lawmaker that 50 children died from diphtheria outbreak in Rano Local Government Area, insisting that only two deaths have been confirmed so far in 2026.

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ýThe member representing Rano Constituency, Ibrahim Muhammad, had alleged that diphtheria claimed the lives of 50 children in the area.

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But the Director-General of the Kano State Centre for Disease Control (KNCDC), Professor Muhammad Adamu Abbas, in a statement on Friday, described the claim as ‘unverified and misleading.’

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ýProfessor Abbas explained that while diphtheria remains a serious public health challenge in the state, surveillance records do not support the figures being circulated.

He disclosed that between July 2023 and August 2026, Rano recorded 32 cases of diphtheria, with 29 deaths statewide, but only two deaths in Rano itself.

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ýAccording to him, 25 patients were treated at the Diphtheria Treatment Centre in Rano General Hospital, while seven others received care at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH) in Kano.

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He added that 94 per cent of those affected had not been vaccinated, and 91 per cent presented late for treatment.

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ýThe KNCDC boss expressed concern over delays in reporting suspected cases, stressing that early detection and treatment are critical to saving lives.

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He criticised the lawmaker for making public statements without consulting health authorities, noting that similar unverified claims were made in October 2025.

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ýProfessor Abbas further revealed that KNCDC teams deployed to communities mentioned by the lawmaker could not verify the alleged deaths, despite engaging with residents and surveillance structures such as traditional leaders, Disease Surveillance Officers, and community informants.

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He questioned how 50 deaths could occur without being reported through these established channels.

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ýHe said efforts to meet with the lawmaker to obtain firsthand information had so far been unsuccessful, but assured that the centre remained committed to investigating any credible leads, including conducting verbal autopsies where necessary.

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ýThe KNCDC Director-General commended both the Kano State Government and the Federal Government for their continued support in disease surveillance and outbreak response.

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He reaffirmed the centre’s commitment to strengthening surveillance, ensuring rapid response, and working with stakeholders to prevent and control disease outbreaks across the state.