Nigeria introduces new technology to combat paternity fraud

In a historic move to address the growing problem of paternity fraud, Nigeria has introduced Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology, a cutting-edge solution that significantly improves the accuracy of DNA testing.

This initiative, the first of its kind in Nigeria and West Africa, is led by the laboratory OncoGenomics in collaboration with The Karygenes et ISN Medical. NGS technology offers a significant improvement over the traditional method of conventional electrophoresis (CE), which has long dominated paternity testing. Beyond paternity disputes, NGS technology has broad applications, including forensic investigations, disaster victim identification, and early cancer detection.

The CEO of the OncoGenomics laboratory, Dr Paul Faduolaat a press conference in Lagos, said NGS, which analyzes up to 1,000 DNA markers compared to 15 to 23 for CE, promises a higher level of accuracy and reliability.

Speaking on the importance of this advancement, Faduola explained: “The more markers you analyze, the more accurate the result. Traditional methods can wrongly exclude biological fathers due to limitations in their marker scope, whereas NGS minimizes these errors.”