Dr Hadiza Nuhu: The ABU Alumnus who invented the anti-malaria drug HB25
Dr Hadiza Nuhu is a multiple award-winning associate Professor of Pharmacy and a distinguished Abusite. She is a wonderful and strong woman, an Academic, Researcher, Philanthropist, mentor and most importantly a Mother.
Dr Hadiza Nuhu is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development at Ahmadu Bello University, ABU, Zaria. She is also a multiple award-winning herbal medicine practitioner.
Born in Kano on the 23rd of August 1965. She holds a PhD in Pharmacognosy from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and a certificate in Information technology from Newcastle College, UK.
She is a member of the Nigerian Society of Pharmacognosy and Botanical Society of Nigeria. She is also the Research Director, the association of commonwealth traditional medicine practitioners, West Africa.
In 2009, her 12years of research paid off as Dr Hadiza produced Herb 25, an anti-malaria drug which she describes as, “an enhanced ethnomedical preparation from a screened combination of herbs that have been used in Nigeria traditionally to treat malaria.”
Herb 25 is a trusted anti-malaria to treat Chloroquine-resistant malaria. Registered by NAFDAC. It dispensed in tea bags, easy to use in hot water. It will be the first time a University in Nigeria will successfully produce such a drug.
This groundbreaking feet earned her numerous awards and recognition including; RMRDC’s local content award 2008, OPAMSA’s vision 20:2020 award 2009, African professional managers award, and officer order of the Niger award.
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Receiving one of her numerous awards from the management of Ahmadu Bello University in recognition of her work, Dr Hadiza Nuhu said “ABU Zaria is blessed with talents. These individuals only need support. If they get the necessary support, ABU, Nigeria, and even Africa would be proud of what they would come up with.”
Dr Hadiza Nuhu’s Fight against malaria
Dr Hadiza Nuhu and malaria are not friends. She has fought the giant killer all her life. This led her into extensive research that has turned her into an authority on all malaria-related issues on the African continent and beyond.
In a paper presented at the African Women Emancipation Continental Conference Held at ECOWAS Commission, Asokoro, Abuja, Nigeria 1st – 2nd Of July, 2010, titled, “Simple and Effective Ways of Combating Malaria in Sub Saharan“, Dr Hadiza Nuhu, OON, who is also the Director, Herbal Point Services, rolled out the following facts about malaria:
- It is the oldest and most devastating parasitic disease whose eradication is an important component of the Millennium Development Goals and must be tackled for any meaningful socio-economic development to take place in Africa.
- With about 3 million annual mortality rates, malaria is the largest contributor to total disease burden and loss of productivity in Africa.
- More than USD 12billion lost each year is accrued to malaria.
To address malaria, she listed a number of complex social, economic, and environmental factors that must be understood and resolved, particularly in the prevention of the disease.
According to her, plants have been the most important chemotherapeutic agents for malaria for thousands of years and must form the basis for simple and effective ways of combating malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.
Dr Hadiza Nuhu noted that a combination of many devastating factors is responsible for the inability to control malaria in Africa and concluded that a renewal of effort is needed largely from within Africa in terms of attention, resources, strategies, research and exploitation of African bio-resources targeted at discrete environments and communities.
This, according to her, is absolutely necessary for success in the control of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.
Mentorship
Whenever you asked about Dr. Hadiza Nuhu, the first description you get is “she is a Caring mother and great mentor”. This is not just because she is always tender and genuinely loving towards her students, but also because she has nurtured, mentored, and inspired hundreds of other pharmacists and researchers who are currently doing exploits.
Pharm. Nelson Okwona in his article titled “the impossible is possible” published by pharma news, Dr Hadiza Nuhu is a noble and dedicated lecturer with an unparalleled commitment to herbal product development.
He said, “I believe my journey (into research) began with meeting Dr. Hadiza Nuhu, as a student at Ahmadu Bello University Zaria. She is a noble and dedicated lecturer with an unparalleled commitment to herbal product development.
“From her, I learnt first-hand that the hurdles against product development from indigenous raw materials are enormous and that a certain level of commitment was required.
“Her work with Herb 25, an antimalarial herbal product left a permanent impression on me. It left the impression that some things are worth doing and that responsibility is chosen.”
Dr. Hadiza Nuhu and her product HERB 25 has since gained recognition in Nigeria and other African countries as an effective malaria drug. She holds the National honor of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON)
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