The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, has announced that N45bn has been disbursed directly to Primary Healthcare Centres across the country through the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.
Pate made this statement on Wednesday in Abuja at the ongoing three-day Nigeria Health Sector-Wide Joint Annual Review, themed “It’s for all of us: Accelerating our health sector reforms together.”
He said, “The Basic Health Care Provision Fund 2.0 reform uses equity considerations in distributing financial and human resources to over 8,000 primary healthcare centres through direct facilities. N45bn has already been disbursed directly to the states to serve our population.”
“We have mobilised more than N3bn in complementary funding over the past three years, including N2.1bn that has been confirmed over time, which will complement the Federal Government’s efforts. In the last year, several facilities have already been revitalised, and 2,600 are currently in the late stages of being upgraded through the states. Additionally, two thousand more facilities will be revitalised as part of this effort.”
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“As a demonstration of the President’s commitment to improving the health workforce, we have announced that 120,000 frontline health workers will be retrained. More than 40,000 have already undergone retraining, and we are on track to meet and exceed the target.”
He stressed that there has been significant progress in tackling infectious diseases, with a 40 per cent reduction in diarrhoeal diseases, a 24 per cent reduction in tuberculosis (TB), and a 12 per cent reduction in HIV.
“With this political commitment, we can accelerate our efforts in the right direction. Seventeen states have already shown improved performance on modern contraceptives, and six have already doubled their efforts.”
“Following the executive order signed by the President, at least 40 businesses have submitted business cases to invest in local manufacturing. We’ve signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Afreximbank for a billion-dollar credit line.”
“Our health security is also making progress, and based on a survey we conducted, the perception of Nigerians has improved. About half of Nigerians have endorsed the trajectory of Nigeria’s health system under the President’s leadership, and more than half are confident in the government’s capacity to effectively manage health emergencies.”
In his remarks, the Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma, noted that despite efforts to reduce under-five and infant mortality rates, the figures remain unacceptably high.
Uzodinma, who represented the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, said, “While we have seen some improvements in health indicators, particularly in reducing under-five and infant mortality rates, these figures remain unacceptably high. Moreover, we have seen worsening trends in neonatal mortality and malnutrition. These statistics highlight the urgency of our work.”
“We must continue to work together, recognising the unique challenges each state faces while maintaining our shared focus on achieving better health outcomes for all Nigerians. I would also like to commend the Minister of Health for his continued efforts to translate the compact into action.”
“The series of engagements carried out across all 36 states have ensured that key stakeholders are aligned on the sector-wide groups and understand their roles in each process.”
He reiterated the commitment of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum to the health sector compact and to improving the health sector.(PUNCH)
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