The Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, recently in Abuja, said that there is need to prioritise Health , because it would boost confidence and encourage better foreign partnership in the health sector.
Professor Adewole made this assertion while fielding questions from the Group ‘3’ Participants of Senior Executive course 41 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, who were on a familiarization visit to the Health Ministry.
Addressing the Group, the Minister stated that though Health was on the concurrent list, some States and Local governments were not doing enough to complement the efforts of the Federal Government in providing effective healthcare delivery in Nigeria.
Adewole noted that the gap had left the sector in disarray, particularly, the Primary Health care facilities, which if properly positioned, could be used to achieve about 70% of healthcare service delivery in the country.
The Minister said that the Federal Ministry of Health would not relent in encouraging State Governments to increase funding to upgrade the Secondary health care facilities (General hospitals) in their domain as the Federal government was reorganising the Tertiary Health facilities to keep it at the apex of the pyramid.
He added that the Ministry had disbursed more funds to Primary Health care centres for their revitalization, allocated 1.4billion Naira in the 2019 budget for strategic funding to stimulate the health sector, while exploring other sources of funding through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement to fast-track efforts towards achieving the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) targets.
Welcoming the participants to the Ministry, the Minister of state for Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Abdullazeez Mashi Abdullahi, jointly appreciated the group for their visit. Dr. Ehanire further urged the group to support health care delivery in all areas across the country; in that, ‘the responsibility for health is multi-sectorial.
Speaking earlier, the leader of the Group, Director, Research (NIPSS), Professor Habu Galadima, said the purpose of their visit was to acquaint them with the Health Ministry, being a core Ministry relevant to the theme of their Study: ‘Funding of Universal Health Coverage in Nigeria.
He added that the visit was also to engage key functionaries in the Ministry and devise appropriate strategies for funding UHC delivery in the country. On behalf of the group, Galadima, appreciated the Ministry for the resource materials and other assistance provided for the group.
The Group was treated to a presentation on the ‘Overview of the Federal Ministry of Health’ by the Department of Planning, Research and Statistics of the Ministry.
Boade Akinola
Director, Media and Public Relations
10th April, 2019. r health to encourage foreign partnership-health Minister
