The World Health Organisation (WHO) has raised the alarm over the rising cases of diabetes in Africa, revealing that 24.6 million adults were living with the disease in 2024, with nearly 75 per cent unaware of their condition.
The organisation warned that the figure could more than double to 59.5 million by 2050 if urgent measures are not taken to strengthen prevention, early diagnosis and access to treatment.
WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Mohamed Janabi, disclosed this in a message marking the 2026 World Diabetes Day, celebrated on November 14.
Janabi called on African governments, healthcare workers, communities and development partners to intensify public awareness campaigns, encourage regular screening and make quality diabetes treatment affordable and accessible.
He expressed concern that many people only discover they have diabetes after developing serious health complications, including kidney failure, blindness, cardiovascular diseases and lower-limb amputations.
The 2026 World Diabetes Day is being observed under the theme, “Early Action on Diabetes”.
According to Janabi, early diagnosis and timely treatment can prevent complications, reduce suffering and save lives.
He urged Nigerians and other Africans to watch out for common symptoms of diabetes, including excessive thirst, frequent urination, unexplained weight loss, persistent tiredness and blurred vision.
“Do not ignore these symptoms. Seek testing and medical advice promptly, and encourage family members and friends to do the same,” he advised.
He also encouraged people at increased risk of the disease to undergo regular screening, warning that diabetes could develop without obvious symptoms.
The WHO official urged communities to spread accurate information about the disease, tackle stigma and discrimination, and support people living with diabetes.
He further charged healthcare workers to improve early detection, provide timely testing and ensure compassionate and patient-centred treatment.
Highlighting efforts to strengthen diabetes care across Africa, Janabi said WHO and its partners were supporting countries through programmes such as the WHO Package of Essential Noncommunicable Disease Interventions (WHO PEN), HEARTS, HEARTS-D and PEN-Plus.
He particularly commended Rwanda for achieving nationwide district-level coverage of the PEN-Plus programme, which strengthens the management of severe noncommunicable diseases at first-level referral facilities.
However, he noted that major gaps remained in the availability of trained healthcare workers, diagnostic equipment, essential medicines and continuous patient care.
Janabi called on African governments to prioritise diabetes prevention, early diagnosis and treatment within primary healthcare and universal health coverage programmes.
He said governments must increase investments in public awareness, affordable insulin, essential medicines, diagnostic services and trained medical personnel.
He also urged development partners, civil society organisations and the private sector to support government efforts, particularly in underserved communities.
The WHO regional director reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to helping African countries achieve the 2030 targets of the Global Diabetes Compact.
He stressed that collective action was necessary to prevent avoidable deaths and disabilities associated with late diagnosis.
“Know the symptoms. Do not ignore the warning signs. Seek testing and care early. Encourage others to do the same,” he said.
Janabi added that early detection and access to quality treatment remained essential to ensuring that no one loses their sight, limb or life because diabetes was diagnosed too late.
