A new global burden of Disease released, yesterday, has revealed that malaria and HIV are now leading causes of death in Nigeria even as it found that Nigerians now live longer than they did 25 years ago.

In Nigeria, malaria was said to be a leading killer, resulting in 192,284 deaths in 2015. The second and third top causes of death were diarrhoeal diseases and HIV/AIDS, killing 143,689 and 131,873, respectively.

Scientists in the new scientific analysis of more than 300 diseases and injuries in 195 countries including Nigeria also noted that income, education, and birth rates, though critical are no longer the only keys to healthy living in the countries.

These and other significant health findings were published in a dedicated issue of The Lancet as part of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD).

Reacting to the study, Executive Director at the Centre for Healthy Start Initiative and a GBD collaborator, Dr. Bolajoko Olusanya, said: “Despite the limitations of the data sources that formed the basis of these estimates in Nigeria, as with many developing countries, the analytical techniques and the key findings are sufficiently robust.”