SGF: Nigeria’s Growing Population Requires Increased Investment in Healthcare

Sunday Ehigiator

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, has said that the  Nigeria’s growing population  requires an increased investments in the healthcare sector.

He stated this yesterday during his keynote address at the official launch of ‘The Lancet Nigeria Commission, held in Abuja.

According to him, it is high time for Nigeria to stepped out and take its deserved position in the world, and can only be achieved with a healthy population driving a healthy economy.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated what Nigeria can achieve with holistically innovative community. The impact of the pandemic on the economy has been significant as several thousand Nigerians lost their lives and livelihoods. Yet Nigeria has been relatively spared from the devastating effect of the pandemic.

“We have been able to harness considerable resources, engaging our partnership with the state government, and private sector, and the global community to contain the pandemic using evidence-based solutions.

“The lessons from this experience are yet to be fully stable, however, we know that Nigeria has not seen the expected results from increased health investment in urban areas.”

 We have an inadequately resourced health system, decaying health infrastructure, and significant out-of-pocket health expenses for our citizens.

“As we emerged from the pandemic and moved on to the recovery, we are very much aware of these problems. Our growing population requires increased investment in health to achieve the desired goals for our growing population. But such investment needs to be efficient, evidence based and sustainable.”

To this end, Mustapha said Nigeria must learn from its multi-sectoral approach which it applied in engaging the COVID-19 pandemic.

He added that prevention, coupled with directional use of resources would go a long way towards improving the health of Nigerians.

“I honestly believe that we need to invest in the health and future of our nation. I have come to learn that despite the weaknesses of our system, the strength of the systems in other democracies, Covid-19 did not respond to money, it responded to signs, facts, and strategic plan.

“There is a need for a surgical change in our health infrastructural system. You can throw whatever amount you want to throw into it, but if this system remains the way it is, it will not yield any positive result,” he said.