About 651 kidneys valued at more than $41 billion were trafficked and transplanted illegally in Nigeria between 2015 and 2020.
The discloser was made by a professor of medicine at the Bayero University, Kano (BUK) and consultant nephrologist at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Professor Aliyu Abdu.
He said the development forms part of a global black market in which 10,000 kidneys are sold every year.
Speaking at a seminar on National Organ and Tissue Transplantation Standards in Abuja, Prof. Abdu warned that organ trafficking is thriving in Nigeria due to weak regulation.
Although the National Health Act of 2014 prohibits the sale of human organs and requires donor consent, he said enforcement remains weak, leaving poor citizens vulnerable to exploitation.
“Victims are mostly impoverished people who are easily influenced by financial incentives and ignorant of the possible risks involved,” he explained, lamenting that many donors are abandoned without proper care after surgery, often left battling depression and disease.
He said the trade is run by an organised criminal network comprising illegal brokers and ‘organ hunters’ to physicians, nurses, ambulance drivers, and even travel and insurance agents.
Prof. Abdu noted that the absence of cadaveric donations and functional organ banks also fuels the black market
