The House of Representatives has passed for second reading a bill seeking to establish a comprehensive legal framework for deceased organ and tissue donation and transplantation in Nigeria.
The bill, sponsored by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu and six other lawmakers, was considered during plenary on Wednesday and seeks to regulate the donation and transplantation process while safeguarding the rights, safety and dignity of donors, recipients and their families.
The proposed legislation provides for the establishment of a National Deceased Donation and Transplantation Authority to oversee and coordinate organ and tissue donation, recovery, allocation and transplantation nationwide.
Leading the debate on the bill’s general principles, co-sponsor Patrick Umoh said organ and tissue donation could help save lives and improve the quality of life of patients suffering from life-threatening conditions.
He, however, emphasised the need for a clear legal, ethical and medical framework to ensure that the process was conducted responsibly and without exploitation.
Umoh said the proposed law would address critical issues, including consent, determination of death, organ recovery, allocation, transplantation, tissue banking, patient safety and regulatory supervision.
He warned that the absence of a coordinated national framework could expose vulnerable individuals to abuse and undermine public confidence in organ donation.
According to him, the bill would promote equitable access to transplantation, strengthen patient safety and establish regulatory mechanisms to prevent the commercialisation and trafficking of human organs and tissues.
Under the proposed framework, recovered organs would be allocated through a national organ allocation and matching system, with recipients selected from a national waiting list based on appropriate medical considerations.
Umoh stressed that access to donated organs would not be determined by wealth, political influence or other non-medical factors. He added that financial inability alone would not constitute grounds for excluding a patient from the waiting list.
The bill contains 172 clauses divided into 16 parts and three schedules, covering the entire deceased-donation process, from identifying potential donors to transplantation.
It proposes the establishment of the National Deceased Donation and Transplantation Authority, with headquarters in Abuja and planned zonal structures to facilitate nationwide coordination and regulatory oversight.
On consent, the legislation stipulates that organ and tissue donation must be voluntary and based on lawful authorisation, ruling out presumed consent and opt-out arrangements.
It provides that adults with legal capacity may authorise the donation of their organs or tissues, with valid first-person authorisation remaining effective even where family members object.
Conversely, a valid refusal to donate would be legally binding, preventing the recovery of organs or tissues against an individual's expressed wishes.
The proposed law also seeks to protect the integrity of death determination by ensuring that decisions on whether a person is dead are made independently of any transplantation considerations, with independent confirmation requirements.
To strengthen accountability, the bill provides for accreditation and licensing of relevant facilities and professionals, donor audits, biovigilance, adverse-event reporting, traceability systems and safety alerts.
It further seeks to outlaw organ trafficking, transplant tourism, brokerage and commercial transactions involving human organs and tissues, with enforcement provisions for offenders.
Recognising the emotional challenges associated with the loss of a loved one, the legislation provides for donor families to receive relevant information, counselling, bereavement and psychological support, as well as spiritual or religious assistance where requested.
The proposed authority would also be required to publish annual reports and national performance indicators while protecting confidential information and personal data.
Following deliberations, lawmakers voted in favour of the bill, which was subsequently passed for second reading and referred to the relevant committee for further legislative consideration.
