The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the University of Lagos (UNILAG) have opened Nigeria’s first Behavioural Insights Research and Design Laboratory, also known as BIRD-Lab. This is the first time behavioural science is being used in Nigeria to improve the survival and development of children.
Experts say BIRD-Lab is not just a research center. It’s a strong promise to help Nigerian children not only stay alive but also grow, learn, and reach their full potential.
The lab was launched at UNILAG’s College of Medicine. It aims to improve mother and child health by combining behavioural science with smart policies and community participation.
This is only the second BIRD-Lab in Africa. The first one was created in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
UNICEF explained that BIRD-Lab is more than just a building. It’s a new way of working together to solve problems. It uses behavioural science to tackle challenges facing children. The main focus is on people – how they think, make decisions, and act – and how these behaviours affect children’s health, education, and future.
UNICEF leads the project with UNILAG, the Network of Behavioural Research for Child Survival in Nigeria (NETBRECSIN), the Federal Ministry of Health, and other partners. The lab includes 19 universities, such as University of Ibadan (UI), University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), University of Abuja (UNIABUJA), Lagos State University (LASU), Chrisland University, University of Benin (UNIBEN), and University of Jos (UNIJOS).
Through NETBRECSIN, these universities work together, combining their different areas of knowledge to improve child health in Nigeria.
For UNICEF, BIRD-Lab is more than just research – it shows Nigeria’s serious effort to rethink how programmes for children are planned and carried out.
UNICEF’s Deputy Country Representative, Rownak Khan, said they want to understand why people act the way they do and how that affects health programmes. This will help design programmes that truly match the needs of local communities, not just what officials think they need.
UNILAG’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, said this project is a great example of how different fields can work together. Prof. Akin Osibogun, former Chief Medical Director at LUTH, added that while developed countries have very low child death rates, Africa still struggles. He believes focusing on behaviour can help change that.
UNICEF’s Chief of Social Behaviour Change, Kshitij Joshi, explained that the lab is more than a place – it’s a method that brings together universities, civil groups, media, and businesses. Students will collect data, which researchers will turn into policy ideas for the government. The Ministry of Health already plans to use these findings in national policies. Joshi hinted more labs may be set up in other Nigerian universities soon.
The lab wants to make real improvements in areas like reducing deaths among mothers, babies, and young children, and increasing vaccination rates. Prof. Ademola Oremosu, Provost of UNILAG’s College of Medicine, said the lab aims to change behaviours to improve health, with mothers and communities at the heart of these changes.
The Nigerian BIRD-Lab is based on the successful model in Ethiopia. That lab focused on understanding behaviour, testing new ideas, building skills, and working with institutions to improve health and development.
UNICEF says these labs, both online and in-person, act as innovation centers. They help shape national policies, design better programmes, and train experts in social behaviour change.
