Climate Change, Freshwater Ecosystem Degradation and Emerging Disease Risks in Nigeria: A One Health Review of Malaria, Cholera and Schistosomiasis

Abstract

Malaria, cholera and schistosomiasis remain major public health concerns in Nigeria, and their transmission is closely connected with freshwater ecosystems. This review examined how climate change, hydrological regime shifts and freshwater ecosystem degradation may influence the epidemiology of these three diseases within a One Health framework. A structured narrative review was conducted using literature published between 2010 and 2026, with emphasis on studies from 2018 onwards. Searches covered PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar, and were supplemented by institutional reports from national and international agencies. The review included 147 peer-reviewed publications and 18 policy or institutional reports. Evidence from the reviewed literature indicates that rising temperatures, increasingly variable rainfall, flooding, drought and altered river flow regimes affect vector habitats, pathogen persistence and human exposure patterns. Malaria risk is linked to changing thermal suitability and the expansion or persistence of Anopheles breeding habitats after rainfall and flooding. Cholera risk is amplified where heavy rainfall, flooding and inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene infrastructure increase faecal contamination of water sources and support environmental persistence of Vibrio cholerae. Schistosomiasis transmission is influenced by the temperature-dependent ecology of Bulinus and Biomphalaria snails, irrigation expansion and post-flood freshwater habitat dynamics. The review also identifies important governance and surveillance gaps, including limited integration of disease reporting with meteorological, hydrological and environmental monitoring. A coordinated One Health approach, supported by climate-sensitive surveillance, ecosystem-based interventions, WASH investment and intersectoral policy implementation, is needed to address the overlapping disease risks associated with Nigeria’s changing freshwater environments.