Health promotion key to stronger health system — WHO

The World Health Organisation (WHO), says effective health promotion remains one of the most efficient and cost-saving strategies to strengthen Nigeria’s health system.

Dr Kingsley Igwebuike, WHO Infodemic Management Lead, stated this in an interview on Thursday with our correspondent on the sidelines of the Health Promotion Partners Coordination Meeting, in Abuja.

Igwebuike explained that health promotion is a process of enabling people to increase control over, and improve their health.

He said that it goes beyond mere awareness creation to include addressing social, economic, and political factors that influence health outcomes.

“Health promotion focuses on social determinants of health and not just on individual behaviour.

“It’s about creating environments that support and sustain healthy living,” he said.

According to him, while health education plays a crucial role in informing and changing individual behaviours, health promotion is more comprehensive as it integrates policies and actions that make healthy choices easier for everyone.

“Both are symbiotic in nature. Health education influences values and attitudes, while health promotion combines education with healthy public policies to make the environment health-friendly.”

He explained that health promotion contributes directly to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including those on zero hunger (SDG 2), good health and wellbeing (SDG 3), quality education (SDG 4), gender equality (SDG 5), and clean water and sanitation (SDG 6).

He also identified challenges limiting the effectiveness of health promotion in Nigeria, including inadequate funding, weak multisectoral collaboration, cultural barriers, poor policy enforcement, and the growing impact of misinformation.

“We must strengthen community and religious leaders’ engagement, improve collaboration across sectors, and leverage digital technologies to promote health literacy,” he added.

Igwebuike urged the government and partners to prioritise governance, funding, and community ownership as core components of national health promotion efforts.

He said that prevention through promotion remains the most cost-effective path to universal health coverage.

Our correspondent reports that Health promotion is the process of helping people and communities gain control over their health by creating environments, policies, and opportunities that make healthy choices easier.

It goes beyond health education by addressing social, economic, and environmental factors, using strategies like education, community engagement, policy-making, and aims to improve health for the whole population, not just individuals at risk.