World Health Day: First Lady calls for stronger, smarter health systems

Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, has called on people around the world to support science and invest more in health systems to create a healthier and stronger global community.

In her message to mark World Health Day 2026, she encouraged governments, organisations, and individuals to focus on scientific progress and work together to solve growing health challenges.

She said that as the world celebrates this important day, everyone should support science, improve healthcare systems, and work together to build a better future for all.

Speaking on this year’s theme, “Together for Health. Stand with Science,” the First Lady explained that progress in healthcare has always depended on new ideas and strong cooperation between countries and different sectors.

She noted that working together in science has helped the world overcome many major health problems and is still very important for improving people’s health.

Mrs Tinubu also talked about the “One Health” approach, which connects human, animal, plant, and environmental health.

She said understanding these connections can help prevent diseases, improve public health, and support sustainable development.

She further called for stronger teamwork among governments, health workers, researchers, and communities to build health systems that can handle current and future challenges.

According to her, creating strong health systems requires not just better facilities and workers, but also continuous support for research, innovation, and sharing of knowledge.