Nigeria ‘II Pursue Attainment Of Universal Healthcare -FG

The Federal Ministry of Health(FMoH), has said the focus on Primary Health Care (PHC), in the country is timely and well-placed, considering that PHC has been identified as the path to Universal Health Coverage(UHC), a goal the country continues to pursue.
The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, said this yesterday in Abuja at the 2022 edition of the annual National Health Dialogue.
The Tide source reports that the high-level platform was organised by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), in collaboration with Premium Times, to advance conversations around key health issues in Nigeria and Africa by extension.
The 2022 dialogue is themed: “Primary Health Care Financing; Role of State and Non-state Actors”.
Ehanire, who was represented by Director of Health Planning Research and Statistics, FMOH, Dr Ngozi Azodoh,said UHC was key to the health and well-being of all Nigerians as it guaranteed needed quality healthcare services for all persons without financial hardship.
He said that the country’s journey to UHC had been slow, but remarkable milestones have been achieved, adding that with heightened efforts to revitalise and strengthen the PHC system, he is confident that the country would inch closer to attaining UHC.
He said that several challenges have bedevilled the country’s healthcare system, describing some of these challenges as shortage and maldistribution of healthcare workers, dilapidated infrastructure, and weak referral systems.
He, however, said that limited financing for the PHC system stands out as a factor that has significantly limited the advancement of the healthcare system.
“The National Health Account reports published over the past decade indicate that expenditure on PHC has been sub-optimal, with significant spending on curative healthcare.
“The inadequacy in funding the PHC system has negatively impacted the delivery of services such as immunisation and maternal and child health services.
“Robust financing would require collaborative efforts of both state and non-state actors, while state actors in government continue to play their roles to ensure that more public resources are available for the PHC systems, a significant proportion of the progress with financing for PHC is dependent on the role of non-state actors,” he said.
The minister said that the private sector, civil society organisations, the media, faith-based organisations, trade unions, professional organisations, academia, community groups, and private citizens alike can all contribute to financing PHC in Nigeria.
He said the country has continued to make efforts to improve the proportion of resources allocated to the PHC system, noting that the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) has been a game changer and resulted in increased financing for the PHC system through the different gateways.
Speaking on “PHC financing, the role of government in achieving optimum PHC performance”, Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaib, said that it has been recognised that health is a fundamental universal right for all.