Environmental Health Education

Environmental health education is the science of preventing human injury and illness by identifying and evaluating environmental sources and hazardous agents. Also by limiting exposure to hazardous, physical, chemical, and biological agents in air, water, soil, food, and other environmental settings may adversely affect human health. SRADev Nigeria through various programs and projects contributes immensely to educating people at the local and national level about the importance of having a healthy environment. We recommend and apply protective interventions that control hazards to health. We develop and provide health communications and educational materials to ensure that environment is sustained.

World Alliance Success Story on Dental Amalgams Phase-Out

Zero Mercury Working Group Project: Skin Lightening Cream campaign in Nigeria 2020/2021

Building upon 2017, 2018, 2019 identification of high-mercury skin-lightening products, various governmental notification/detention lists, and a few NGO surveys, a list of “terrible eighty” has been compiled. In 2020-2021, the Zero Mercury Working Group has in mind to monitor the presence of these products on the major Internet sales platforms in a number of countries including Nigeria, as well as purchase and analyze the products for their mercury content. The ultimate goal of our “Terrible Eighty” Campaign is to keep Internet sales in the spotlight for about a year, highlight to authorities possible flaws when it comes to liabilities for Internet platforms, and stop sales of the identified high-mercury creams.

The project is being implemented by Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADev Nigeria) and funded by Zero Mercury Working Group.

Specifically, the project is to eradicate mercury base skin-lightening creams (bleaching creams) sold on local internet marketing platforms. Recall the mercury-containing creams have been ban by the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) based on the provision of the Minamata Convention for the phase-out of mercury-containing products by 2020. This bleaching cream Campaign has been ongoing since 2017 till date, and there has been a huge achievement in the eradication of the sale of bleaching creams on local internet marketing platforms. Following the high cream on platforms, SRADev Nigeria is actively involved in the campaign through these steps;

• Monitoring Monthly checks for bleaching creams (dirty eighty) on the local online platforms
• Consultation (courtesy visits/meeting and phone calls) with relevant MDAs – Federal Ministry of Environment, Health, Industry, Trades and Investment, National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Council (FCCPC), etc.
• Identify where the corporate offices of the internet platforms are located in Lagos, Nigeria.
• Sampling: search, purchase, labeling, shipping, and documentation.

However, SRADev Nigeria has gone the extra miles to go through the internet marketing platforms in search of the (Terrible Eighty) bleaching creams, and so far we have found just a few and those platforms have been issued letters to take down the creams. From October 2020 to February 2021, bleaching creams found on the platforms have been purchased, labeled, shipped, and documented for sampling.  A bimonthly check on the “Terrible Eighty” is always recorded to keep track of any of the products found.