NSIA Earmarks Additional $2m to Healthcare Financing as Edun Seeks Global Alliance Against Cancer

James Emejo in Abuja

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, has called for a united front against cancer, adding that the county has the capability to treat the ailment.

This is as the Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Mr. Aminu Sadiq Umar, said it has earmarked an additional $2 million to the training of healthcare professionals over the next of years.

Both spoke at the Medserve Oncology Summit 2.0 event, with the theme, “Enhancing the Oncology Workforce in Nigeria”, which was organised by the NSIA in Abuja.

The minister said global collaboration and technological advancements have improved the prospects for those with cancer, making it a “fairer fight”.
He said as the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria has a key responsibility to lead the charge in the global effort to combat and ultimately defeat cancer.

Edun said, “The true test is to have the ability and determination to maintain the efforts, so that over time, the benefits are available to a large number of people, and what you start, others can take to greater heights.”

He said, “But then, there’s that whole human side, the social, psychological side, and what we saw in that BBC interview is hope. It’s when people see it, they see that in Nigeria, we have all it takes to treat people with empathy, to treat people with compassion, but also to bring the skill, the knowledge and the technology that can cure them.

“So, what we are all doing today and what our effort is all about – is making the fight a fairer one for people and nations that are determined to fight; to make an effort and to help their people.

“We need to improve technologically-wise, so, that it’s a fairer fight for those who are up for it, and as nations, we must be up for it on behalf of our people,.”

However, Umar said the additional financing was to help strengthen the against fight cancer.

He said, “NSIA has so far committed to spending $2 million to the training of healthcare professionals over the next few years.
“We have actually started this programme already in eight teaching hospitals across Nigeria.

“We should move to do more, it is important to do more because the requirements for healthcare professionals and the scourge of cancer, Nigeria and the rest of the world need this to work efficiently.”

 He said, “This year our theme, ‘Enhancing the Oncology Workforce in Nigeria’ is one of the major issues in oncology.

“Cancer, as we know, is a growing health pandemic in Nigeria and other parts of the world, with the increasing number of cases that we see each year.”
The NSIA boss stressed that by investing in healthcare professionals and equipping them with the skill they need, the country will be able to provide comprehensive and high-quality care to cancer patients throughout Nigeria.

In his remarks, Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, expressed optimism that technological advancements will render cancer a manageable condition within the next 40 years.

He said the theme of the summit aligned with the President Bola Tinubu’s healthcare objectives adding that the federal government was implementing measures to ensure that more health workers are trained to meet the country’s growing population.

Pate said, “We are establishing the necessary infrastructure and equipment, which are essential for training. This summit is in line with our efforts to train more healthcare professionals.

“Recently, we launched the Health Workforce Migration Policy, which includes policy measures to reduce the outflow and expand the training of healthcare professionals in Nigeria.

“We have doubled the quotas for training health professionals in medicine, pharmacy, and nursing, but it will take time before the impact is felt.”
He said, “The current administration is addressing the issues that should have been tackled over the past several years.

“We are playing catch-up, given the loss of many experts. However, we must ensure that the emerging young professionals receive training to serve in specialized areas like cancer care.”

He commended the NSIA for organising the summit and expressed hope that collective efforts will help contain the scourge, particularly ensuring that vulnerable Nigerians have a fairer chance to combat the disease.