From Nigeria to Geneva, the Case for Putting Men’s Health on the Global Agenda
By Vitus Ejiogu Chibueze. | SkyDNews Analysis Desk
When delegates from across the world gathered in Geneva for the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA), the highest decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO), they debated a wide range of urgent global health challenges. Discussions covered healthcare financing, rare diseases, workforce shortages, humanitarian emergencies, conflict-related health crises, and universal health coverage.
Yet one issue affecting nearly half of humanity remained largely invisible: men’s health.
The omission is not new. For decades, men’s health has occupied a peculiar position in global health discussions, widely acknowledged through alarming statistics but rarely prioritized in policy conversations. While women’s health rightly receives increasing attention due to historic inequities in healthcare research and service delivery, experts argue that the persistent neglect of men’s health is creating another public health crisis that deserves urgent attention.
The challenge, health advocates say, is not choosing between men and women. It is recognizing that healthier societies require healthier outcomes for everyone.
The Nigerian Context: A Silent National Emergency
The debate over men’s health is particularly relevant in Nigeria.
Across communities from Lagos to Kano, Port Harcourt to Maiduguri, men are often expected to embody strength, resilience, and self-sacrifice. Seeking medical attention is frequently viewed as a sign of weakness. Many Nigerian men visit hospitals only when illnesses have reached advanced stages.
Historically, Nigeria’s healthcare campaigns have concentrated heavily on maternal and child health, reproductive health, and infectious diseases. These interventions have saved millions of lives and remain essential. However, comparatively little attention has been devoted to understanding the unique health challenges facing men.
The consequences are visible.
Cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes, kidney disease, prostate cancer, substance abuse, mental health disorders, and road traffic injuries continue to claim thousands of male lives annually.
In many rural communities, men often work in physically demanding occupations such as farming, mining, construction, transportation, and fishing. These professions expose them to occupational hazards, environmental toxins, injuries, and chronic stress.
The economic pressures facing Nigerian men have intensified over recent decades. Rising unemployment, inflation, insecurity, and social expectations frequently create enormous psychological burdens.
Yet conversations about men’s mental health remain limited.
Many suffer in silence.
A Historical Pattern of Male Health Neglect
The neglect of men’s health is not unique to Nigeria.
Historically, public health systems around the world evolved around treating diseases after they emerged rather than preventing them. Men were often viewed as naturally resilient and less vulnerable to illness.
This perception has deep historical roots.
During the Industrial Revolution of the nineteenth century, men formed the backbone of dangerous labor sectors including mining, manufacturing, railways, shipping, and construction. Workplace deaths and injuries were common, yet little attention was paid to the long-term health implications.
The dominant cultural expectation was simple: men were expected to endure.
Throughout the twentieth century, many governments developed comprehensive health policies for women and children, recognizing their vulnerability and the broader social benefits of maternal health. While these investments were both necessary and transformative, equivalent attention to male-specific health challenges never emerged.
As a result, men often became invisible within preventive healthcare frameworks.
Health systems largely focused on treating male illness rather than preventing it.
The Stark Numbers
According to findings presented during the World Health Assembly in Geneva, men continue to experience poorer health outcomes across many major indicators.
Globally, male life expectancy stands at approximately 71.5 years, around five years lower than that of women.
There is currently no country in the world where men live longer than women.
Men bear a disproportionate burden from many leading causes of premature death, including:
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Liver diseases
- Occupational injuries
- Road traffic accidents
- Substance abuse disorders
- Violence-related deaths
Perhaps most alarming is the suicide gap.
Globally, approximately three out of every four suicide deaths involve men.
These figures challenge the widespread assumption that men naturally enjoy better health outcomes simply because they often hold greater social or economic power.
The Myth of Biological Destiny
One of the strongest arguments emerging from recent research is that poor male health outcomes are not primarily determined by biology.
Peter Baker, Chief Executive of Global Action on Men’s Health (GAMH), argues that the widespread belief that men are “destined” to die younger is scientifically misleading.
While biological differences certainly exist between sexes, experts increasingly emphasize that social and behavioral factors play a much larger role.
These include:
- Delayed healthcare-seeking behaviour
- Risk-taking lifestyles
- Higher rates of alcohol consumption
- Tobacco use
- Dangerous occupations
- Reluctance to discuss mental health concerns
- Poor engagement with preventive health services
In many societies, masculinity is associated with self-reliance and toughness.
Unfortunately, these expectations often discourage men from seeking help when they need it most.
The Cost of Silence
Ignoring men’s health does not merely affect individual men.
It affects families, communities, and national economies.
When a father dies prematurely, households lose income, guidance, and stability.
When working-age men become disabled by preventable diseases, economic productivity declines.
When mental health challenges go untreated, families experience emotional, social, and financial strain.
A recent analysis by GAMH and the global men’s health organization Movember estimated that nearly $380 billion in economic losses could have been avoided in a single year across six developed countries if preventable premature male deaths had been reduced.
Those countries represent less than ten percent of the world’s male population.
The true global economic burden is therefore likely to be far greater.
For developing nations like Nigeria, where social protection systems remain limited, the consequences may be even more severe.
The Overlooked Mental Health Crisis
Perhaps nowhere is the neglect of men’s health more evident than in mental health.
Historically, mental illness among men has been hidden beneath cultural expectations of strength and emotional restraint.
Across Africa, including Nigeria, conversations about depression, anxiety, trauma, and emotional vulnerability among men remain stigmatized.
Many men are taught from childhood to suppress emotions.
Phrases such as “be a man,” “men don’t cry,” and “handle it yourself” continue to shape behaviour.
The result is often delayed treatment, social isolation, substance abuse, and, in some cases, suicide.
Mental health professionals increasingly warn that untreated psychological distress among men contributes to violence, addiction, family breakdown, and poor physical health outcomes.
Addressing men’s mental health is therefore not simply a medical issue, it is a societal imperative.
The Digital Age and the Rise of the Manosphere
A new challenge has emerged in recent years.
Millions of young men now seek guidance through social media influencers promoting ideas about masculinity, self-improvement, fitness, relationships, and success.
Research conducted by the Movember Institute found that a significant proportion of young men regularly consume content from so-called “masculinity influencers.”
While some content encourages healthy habits and personal development, other segments promote unrealistic body standards, emotional suppression, hostility toward women, and harmful stereotypes.
Experts warn that exposure to such content can worsen body image concerns, encourage risky behaviours, and discourage young men from seeking professional support.
The growing influence of these online communities reflects a broader reality: many young men are searching for answers about identity, purpose, belonging, and wellbeing.
Public health systems have largely failed to fill that gap.
Why Men’s Health Is Missing from Global Policy
One of the most intriguing questions is why men’s health remains absent from many international health agendas.
The answer lies partly in politics.
Progressive policymakers often prioritize women because women have historically experienced discrimination, underrepresentation, and health inequities.
Conservative policymakers, meanwhile, may resist discussions around men’s vulnerabilities because they conflict with traditional ideals of male strength and self-sufficiency.
As a result, men’s health often falls into a political blind spot.
Neither side fully embraces the issue.
Consequently, men become what some advocates describe as “totally underrepresented” within public health frameworks.
Lessons from Successful Women’s Health Advocacy
The growing discussion around men’s health should not be viewed as competition with women’s health.
Indeed, advocates argue that women’s health movements offer valuable lessons.
Women’s health advocates spent decades documenting disparities, collecting data, building evidence, influencing policymakers, and changing public attitudes.
Their efforts led to major advances in research funding, reproductive healthcare, maternal health programmes, and gender-sensitive policies.
Men’s health advocates are now calling for a similar evidence-based approach.
Their objective is not to redirect resources away from women.
Rather, they seek recognition that health inequalities affecting men also deserve attention.
What Nigeria Can Do
Nigeria has an opportunity to become a leader in Africa on men’s health.
Several practical interventions could make a significant difference:
- Establish a National Men’s Health Strategy
A dedicated framework could coordinate research, prevention campaigns, and health services tailored to men’s needs. - Expand Preventive Health Screening
Routine screening for hypertension, diabetes, prostate cancer, cardiovascular disease, and mental health conditions should become more accessible. - Promote Workplace Health Programs
Given the concentration of men in high-risk occupations, employers can play a critical role in prevention and early intervention. - Normalize Mental Health Conversations
Religious leaders, traditional rulers, educators, and media organizations can help reduce stigma around emotional wellbeing. - Improve Health Data Collection
More sex-disaggregated health data would allow policymakers to identify disparities and design effective interventions. - Engage Young Men Early
Schools, sports organizations, and youth programs should promote healthy lifestyles, emotional intelligence, and positive models of masculinity.
A Healthier Future for Everyone
The debate over men’s health should not be framed as a battle between men and women.
Health is not a zero-sum game.
When women receive better healthcare, societies benefit.
When children receive better healthcare, societies benefit.
And when men receive better healthcare, societies benefit too.
The challenge facing policymakers is not deciding whose health matters more.
It is recognizing that every preventable death, every untreated illness, and every missed opportunity for prevention weakens families, communities, and economies.
The message emerging from Geneva is increasingly clear: improving men’s health does not diminish the importance of women’s health.
Rather, it strengthens the broader pursuit of health equity.
For too long, men’s health has occupied the margins of global health policy.
As nations confront rising healthcare costs, aging populations, mental health crises, and widening inequalities, the world can no longer afford to leave half its population out of the conversation.
The question is no longer whether men’s health deserves a place on the global agenda.
The real question is how much longer the world can afford to ignore it.
