By Our Correspondent
National News – The Federal Government has approved the disbursement of N32 billion to primary health facilities across Nigeria under the Basic Health Care Provision Fund, a move aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery, improving maternal services, and expanding emergency medical care nationwide.
The announcement was made on Tuesday after a Ministerial Oversight Committee meeting reviewing progress in the country’s health sector reform programme initiated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Ali Pate, disclosed that the funds would be released directly to health facilities as part of ongoing reforms designed to improve primary healthcare services and ensure resources reach communities faster.
According to Pate, the committee reviewed key health performance indicators including primary healthcare utilisation, immunisation coverage, and mortality rates before approving the disbursement.
He explained that the funding decision was taken to support facilities providing essential services under the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.
He further revealed that the government plans to expand the number of healthcare facilities receiving direct financing by adding about 5,000 more centres nationwide.
The expansion, he said, will help improve access to basic healthcare services in rural and underserved communities.
The minister also announced that tariffs for emergency ambulance services had been revised upward to encourage both public and private providers to respond faster during medical emergencies.
Pate noted that government interventions were already yielding results in maternal health.
Over 40,000 women, he said, had benefited from reimbursement for complications related to obstetric deliveries, making life-saving treatments more affordable for families.
He added that the government’s decision to make treatment for emergency obstetric complications free had already begun saving lives across the country.
The free fistula treatment programme, another intervention under the health reform agenda, has also reached more than 4,000 women whose lives have been restored after receiving medical care.
On disease surveillance, Pate said Nigeria recorded more than 200 outbreak episodes within the past year, most of which were quickly contained through rapid response efforts led by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Adekunle Salako, emphasised the importance of transparency and accountability in the management of public health funds.
He said civil society organisations would continue to monitor how resources are used at facility level to ensure value for government investments in healthcare.
The Basic Health Care Provision Fund, established under Nigeria’s National Health Act, is designed to support universal health coverage by funding a minimum package of essential health services for citizens.
