The Federal Government has declared a national war on lead poisoning, one of the world’s most preventable yet devastating public health crises, unveiling a coordinated action plan to wipe out toxic exposure that threatens millions of children.

At the activities marking the National Lead Poisoning Elimination Day on Monday in Abuja, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Mohammad Ali Pate, said the Federal Government was mobilising science, policy, and public action to end the scourge, warning that “there is no safe level of lead exposure.”

“Lead poisoning is not just an environmental issue; it’s a public health crisis that steals our children’s future and weakens our human capital,” the minister said.

Pate informed that the Federal Ministry of Health, through its Public Health Department, is driving a five-year National Lead Elimination Strategy, an inter-ministerial framework that brings together the Ministries of Health, Environment, Mines and Steel Development, Agriculture, and Water Resources.

The plan focuses on: expanding laboratory networks for blood lead testing, strengthening surveillance and early detection, enforcing environmental safety laws, reducing lead in paints, food, and consumer products, and training frontline workers for rapid community response.

According to the minister, the government has also begun distributing chelation drugs to treat affected children and deploying new testing equipment to high-risk states, with technical support from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

Nigeria has faced some of the world’s worst lead poisoning disasters from Zamfara (2010) to Niger (2015) and Sokoto (recent years) where hundreds of children died from contaminated mining sites.

“These tragedies are scars on our conscience. We are building a system that detects early, responds swiftly, and prevents permanently,” he said.

Nigeria’s renewed campaign aligns with global efforts led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) to phase out lead exposure worldwide.

“Protecting our children from lead poisoning is protecting the nation’s future. The era of silence is over. We are acting now to save lives,” he added.