The Nigerian government has intensified its push to reform neurological and mental healthcare, designating brain health as a priority both nationally and across the continent.

As part of this initiative, the country is embedding neurological services into major health programmes, broadening access to treatment, and enhancing domestic pharmaceutical production to confront the growing burden of brain-related illnesses.

This renewed commitment was detailed by the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, at the First Africa Neurological Health Summit, held in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

Speaking at the event—co-hosted by the Brain and Spine Foundation Africa and the Ministry—Professor Pate said the summit represented a shift from dialogue to decisive measures.

Represented by the National Coordinator for Mental Health, Dr. Tunde Ojo, Prof. Pate noted that neurological disorders such as stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and traumatic injuries now rank among the leading causes of disability and death globally.

“The burden is particularly severe in low- and middle-income countries, where treatment gaps for conditions like epilepsy exceed 75%,” he said.

Professor Pate pointed to recent steps taken by the government, including integrating mental and neurological services into the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF), passing the National Mental Health Act, and launching a national policy on non-communicable diseases.

He further announced tax exemptions on essential neuropharmaceutical products to boost local manufacturing and affordability.

The Minister stressed that progress requires joint effort, urging states, academia, civil society, and the private sector to invest, coordinate, and act so that no Nigerian or African is left without access to life-saving neurological care.

Founder and Executive Director of Brain and Spine Foundation Africa, Engr. Chika Okwuolisa shared a personal story of her sister’s stroke in 2012, which revealed deep gaps in Nigeria’s neurological care system.

“That experience birthed Brain and Spine Foundation Africa,” she said, underscoring the urgency for reforms, heightened public awareness, and cross-sector collaboration to prevent avoidable deaths and disabilities from brain and spinal conditions.

Engr. Okwuolisa lamented the silence, stigma, and financial pressures that often lead to needless suffering and fatalities, especially in underserved areas.

“Neurological health is not a luxury, it is foundational,” she declared, adding that the summit represents a vital step in making brain health central to health policy and public investment across Africa.

Representing the WHO Country Representative in Nigeria, the organization’s Team Lead for Communicable and Non-communicable Diseases, Dr. Mya Ngon, reiterated WHO’s commitment to working with the Federal Ministry of Health and other stakeholders to expand interventions nationwide.

Dr. Ngon acknowledged that while Africa has made some headway in addressing neurological disorders, the prevalence of conditions such as stroke, epilepsy, and dementia is still increasing.

“Let us take this summit as an opportunity to move from discussion to action,” she urged.

“As part of WHO broader commitment, we are looking forward to implementing jointly developed recommendations that emerge from the summit,” she added.

Dr. Ngon also emphasized the importance of people-centered and sustainable interventions, stating,

“We are fully committed to seeing this agenda succeed.”

In his special remarks, Prof. Samuel Ohaebulam, Patron of Brain and Spine Foundation Africa and President of the Nigeria Academy of Medicine, raised concerns over the acute shortage of skilled personnel and facilities for neurological care in Nigeria.

He pointed out that intensive care units, trained nurses, and specialists in the field remain in critically short supply.

Prof. Ohaebulam highlighted the urgent need to bolster medical training and retain professionals, lamenting the persistent brain drain.

“After we invest in training, our specialists leave to find jobs abroad. It’s very sad,” he said, calling for tangible solutions to curb the exodus and build a stronger local health workforce.

He also urged African leaders to recognize the continent’s immense resources and reduce reliance on foreign aid.

“Africa is the most blessed continent, yet we keep begging for help,” he remarked, encouraging stakeholders to take ownership of the continent’s neurological health agenda.

Participants—including policymakers, healthcare practitioners, and international partners—were called upon to close the gap in neurological care through inclusive policies, adequate funding, and comprehensive healthcare reforms.

When 300-level student Ethelbert Onyinyechi from Imo State began losing strength in her legs, no one imagined it would end in paralysis. What started as an illness soon progressed into something far more serious—complete loss of mobility in both legs.

Medical tests finally revealed the truth: a growth on her Spinal Cord. Surgery was the only way forward. But instead of relief, the diagnosis sparked panic.

Onyinye’s parents, crushed by the cost and frightened by the unknown, turned to religious leaders for guidance. The verdict from several pastors was firm:
“Don’t go ahead with the surgery—she won’t survive.”

That was the moment Brain and Spine Foundation Africa entered her story. I met Onyinye and her family at a time when faith was clashing with fear. I remember telling her parents:
“If anything happens to your daughter, hold me responsible.”

That conversation changed everything.

Within just a few months, the Foundation raised the full cost of the surgery. I personally funded the surgery and six months of post-operative rehabilitation. The surgery was successful—and for the first time in years, hope returned.

That was over five years ago.

The journey hasn’t been without its struggles, but thanks to continued support from Brain and Spine Foundation Africa, and the kindness of well-meaning Nigerians, Onyinye has defied every limitation placed on her.

Today, she’s not just surviving—she’s thriving.

She recently became a certified journalist

She serves as the Coordinator of the BSFA Patients & Survivors Support Group

And she remains a fierce voice of encouragement for others walking a similar path

Onyinye’s story is proof of what happens when compassion meets action.

“When the world said I couldn’t, BSFA stood up and said I could. They didn’t just help me walk again—they helped me find my voice.”
– Ethelbert Onyinyechi

Her journey reminds us that healing takes more than medicine—it takes belief, bold decisions, and community. And for that, Onyinye stands tall, even from a wheelchair!

At 31, Abasifreke Effiong should have been chasing dreams. Instead, she was chasing answers.

It began subtly—backache, weakness, her left shoulder felt stiff. Then she started struggling to grip things. Her family thought it was exhaustion, maybe stress from work. But as the weakness worsened, fear crept in. There were no answers. Just suggestions: “Try this prayer house.” “See that herbalist.” “Maybe someone’s behind it.”

They tried it all. But nothing stopped the decline.

By the time she was finally taken to a hospital, the diagnosis came like thunder: an advanced spinal cord tumor. The tumor had grown silently, pressing on her spinal nerves. It was too late to reverse what had already been lost. She was paralyzed from the shoulders down.

And then came the second blow—no money for treatment.

Her family had done all they could. But the kind of care she needed—specialist neurosurgery, long-term rehab, intensive support—was far beyond their reach. Hope was slipping again, this time under the weight of financial despair.

Then someone whispered a lifeline:

“Call Brain and Spine Foundation Africa.”

When we met Abasifreke, she had lost movement, but not her fire. Her voice was steady, her eyes unwavering. She wasn’t looking for pity—she was looking for a fighting chance.

We gave her one.

Through the Foundation, she was connected to a network of professionals who understood spinal cord injuries, not just medically—but personally. We provided:

Specialist evaluations and consultations

Financial support to begin her care journey

Mobilizing funding for her surgery

Lifestyle assistance for daily living

Ongoing physical therapy to preserve what function remains.

She is still paralyzed, but not powerless. She is still facing challenges, but not alone.

Abasifreke is why we exist.
Because too many young lives are cut short not by disease alone—but by delay, misdirection, and lack of access.
Because neurological disorders do not ask if you can afford them.

And because healing begins with someone who says,
“We see you. We’ll walk with you. We won’t stop.”

“They came in when no one else could.
They gave us knowledge, support, and above all, a chance to hope again.”
– A family member of Abasifreke

Let’s make sure no one else walks this path alone.

“They say he looks fine. But he forgets his name sometimes.”

The Battle No One Sees

There are no crutches. No scars. No bandages. So people say, “You’re lucky.” But he forgets how to button his shirt. Sometimes, he forgets his children’s names. And every day, he’s fighting to be seen—not just as someone who survived, but as someone still healing.

Neurological damage isn’t always dramatic. It’s subtle. It hides in silence, in confusion, in frustration. In being called lazy, dramatic, or “fine” when you’re far from it.

We Make the Invisible Visible

At BSFA, we shine a light on what others miss. We help patients and families name what they’re going through—cognitive fog, aphasia, PTSD, neuro fatigue—and give them the tools to cope, recover, and rebuild.

Our Mission Is Clarity

Neuro-Rehabilitation Support: We connect patients to physical, speech, and occupational therapists who understand invisible trauma.

Workplace Awareness Programs: We help employers accommodate and support neuro-recovery without judgment.

Community Inclusion Campaigns: We tell real stories, create space for empathy, and challenge the “you look okay” myth.

Ways You Can Help Make Them Seen

Fund a Neuro Recovery Kit: Includes resources, therapy referrals, and tools for self-tracking progress.

Support a Patient Scholarship: Cover rehabilitation costs for indigent patients fighting silent battles.

Amplify a Voice: Share our survivor stories on your social channels. Visibility changes minds—and systems.

Survival is just the beginning. Healing is the real fight. And no one should have to fight alone—or unseen.

No sirens. No screams. Just a fall in the bathroom and then… stillness.

When the Brain Breaks, It Whispers

There was no drama—no blood, no car crash, no warning. Just a slip and silence. The family thought it was nothing. Hours later, she couldn’t move one side of her body. She had suffered a stroke.

In Africa, neurological trauma is often missed because it doesn’t always look like an emergency. There are no flashing lights or loud signs. And when you don’t know what to look for, you lose time—the one thing you can’t buy back.

We Teach People to Hear What Others Miss

At Brain and Spine Foundation Africa, we train communities to recognize the invisible emergencies. The early symptoms. The subtle signs. The small changes that scream louder than words ever could—if only you’re taught to hear them.

Our Response Model

Grassroots Neuro Education: From town halls to TikTok, we teach the signs of stroke, trauma, seizures, and brain bleeds.

Local First Responder Partnerships: We work with community health workers and volunteers to close the gap between incident and action.

Toolkits for Families: We distribute simple guides and checklists to empower people to act quickly and confidently.

Change Starts With One Action

Support Our Training Missions: A small donation trains a volunteer who might save 100 lives.

Become a Neuro-Educator: We’ll teach you. You’ll teach your community.

Sponsor a Toolkit Drive: Fund the printing and distribution of thousands of illustrated guides across rural communities.

A stroke doesn’t wait for you to understand it. But knowledge buys you time. And time buys you life

“I thought my sister just had a headache. By nightfall, she couldn’t speak.”

A Wake-Up Call That Came Too Late

To most people, a headache is just that—a headache. But when it’s a brain hemorrhage, minutes matter. The brain doesn’t send out alarms like a car. It dims quietly. That’s how we lost the version of her we knew.

At Brain and Spine Foundation Africa, we see the brain not just as an organ, but as life’s control panel. Speech, movement, memory, love—it all flows from that small, soft command center. When it’s healthy, it’s silent. When it’s not, the world unravels.

We Protect the Light

We exist to flip the switch back on for people whose brains or spines have dimmed. Whether it’s through emergency response training, hospital mapping, or grassroots education, BSFA is committed to creating systems that act—before it’s too late.

Our Mission in Motion

We educate communities to recognize the early signs of stroke, aneurysm, and trauma.

We push for mobile neuro-units and trained first responders in all 36 states of Nigeria.

We support families through recovery, providing tools, funding, and hope.

What You Can Do

Donate: Fund our campaigns that bring life-saving knowledge to rural and urban areas.

Volunteer: Join our mission in your community—be the one who knows what to do when others panic.

Partner: Collaborate with us on tech, logistics, or outreach. Let’s build a system that works before the switch goes off.

Because when the brain fails, it doesn’t ask if you’re ready. But together, we can be.