The World Health Organisation has raised concerns about poor access to oral healthcare in Africa, stating that only 17% of the population can access essential dental services.
The Acting Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, made this known in his message on Thursday to mark the 2025 World Oral Health Day.
He noted that despite progress in oral healthcare, Africa still struggles with major dental issues, including tooth decay, gum disease, and tooth loss. He also highlighted the high prevalence of noma, a severe mouth infection that mainly affects young children.
“The region also has the highest number of noma cases, a rapidly progressing, non-contagious gangrenous disease of the mouth that primarily affects young children. If left untreated, noma has a high fatality rate, and survivors often suffer from lifelong impairments, disfigurement, stigma, and discrimination,” Ihekweazu said.
He explained that African countries have adopted measures to improve oral health, including the Regional Oral Health Strategy (2016–2025), which integrates dental care into noncommunicable disease control programs.
“At the global level, the Seventy-fourth World Health Assembly in 2021 recognized oral health as a core part of the NCD agenda and Universal Health Coverage,” he said.
Some African countries, including Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Lesotho, have developed national oral health policies. Ethiopia and Kenya have trained thousands of health workers on oral health and noma detection, while Ethiopia has improved its noma surveillance system.
However, Ihekweazu pointed out that the oral health workforce in Africa remains insufficient.
“In 2022, the region had 56,772 oral health workers, including dentists, dental assistants, and therapists (0.37 per 10,000 population) – far below the required 158,916 oral health workers (1.33 per 10,000 population) needed to meet the demand,” he said.
He called for urgent action to speed up the implementation of the Global Oral Health Action Plan, increase funding, and integrate dental care into national health programs.
According to him, WHO hosted its first-ever Global Oral Health Meeting in Thailand in November 2024 to push for better oral healthcare worldwide.
