Bioprospecting and Biodiversity Commercialization in Nigeria: Strategic Pathways for Tropical Disease Drug Discovery

Nigeria’s extensive biodiversity and rich ethnomedicinal heritage present a critical opportunity to address global health challenges, particularly those related to tropical diseases such as malaria, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, and enteric fever. This paper explores the potential of bioprospecting and commercialization of indigenous bioresources as a pathway to drug discovery and economic development. Drawing on the Resource-Based View, National Innovation Systems, and the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem framework, the study examines the disconnect between Nigeria’s ecological wealth and its marginal role in global pharmaceutical value chains. The paper identifies key barriers including weak legal frameworks, inadequate infrastructure, fragmented intellectual property regimes, and limited integration of traditional knowledge into formal research and development (R&D) as constraints to effective bioprospecting. It further highlights environmental degradation and ethical concerns such as biopiracy. Entrepreneurial opportunities are explored across sectors such as phytopharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, botanical cosmetics, and bioremediation. Recommendations include strengthening research infrastructure, reforming policy to ensure benefit-sharing, investing in human capital, and promoting community-based enterprises. This interdisciplinary review offers a road map for utilizing Nigeria's biodiversity to promote inclusive innovation, enhance public health, and create a robust bioeconomy.