Award-winning Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has revealed that the death of her 21-month-old son, Nkanu, has profoundly changed her feelings towards Nigeria, saying she no longer wants to return to the country.
Adichie made the disclosure in an interview with The New York Times while reflecting on the death of her son and the circumstances surrounding his final days.
“My feelings toward Nigeria have changed,” the author said when asked about her relationship with the country.
She later added: “I do not want to go back to Nigeria.”
Nkanu, one of Adichie’s twin sons, died in January 2026 after suffering a medical emergency at Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital in Lagos. According to the family’s account, the child had initially developed a fever before undergoing further medical assessment, including an MRI during which he was sedated with propofol. He subsequently suffered cardiac arrest and died within 24 hours.
The circumstances surrounding his death have since become the subject of an ongoing coroner’s inquest, while the family has also pursued proceedings before Nigeria’s Medical and Dental Council.
The Medical and Dental Council previously announced a prima facie case of negligence against three doctors involved in Nkanu’s care, with the development leading to their suspension pending further proceedings. The matter remains subject to the relevant legal and regulatory processes.
For Adichie, the loss has not only brought profound personal grief but has also affected the emotional connection she has long maintained with Nigeria.
The author has spent much of her career exploring Nigerian identity, culture and the experience of Nigerians at home and abroad. Her novels, including Americanah and Half of a Yellow Sun, have established her as one of the country’s most internationally recognised writers.
She told The New York Times that Nigeria had always been deeply intertwined with her identity and that she remained grateful to the country for giving her the experiences that shaped her as a writer.
However, Nkanu’s death has changed that relationship.
The family had maintained homes in Nigeria and the United States and regularly spent holidays in Nigeria. Adichie said her children had also developed a strong connection to the country, with her daughter describing Nigeria as her “happy place.”
Despite her own reluctance to return, Adichie acknowledged that her children’s attachment to Nigeria could influence the family’s future decisions.
She said the family had effectively had two homes for years, spending Christmas, Easter and summers in Nigeria.
The tragedy has therefore created a painful contrast for the author: a country that once represented home, family and belonging has become inseparable from the loss of her son.
Adichie and her husband, Dr Ivara Esege, have said their focus is not on pursuing a lawsuit against the hospital but on seeking accountability and improvements in Nigeria’s healthcare system so that other families do not experience a similar tragedy.
As the inquest continues, the circumstances surrounding Nkanu’s death remain under scrutiny.
For Adichie, however, the impact of the loss extends beyond the ongoing proceedings. It has fundamentally changed how she sees the country she once considered home, leaving her to navigate grief while also confronting a painful shift in her relationship with Nigeria.
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