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80% of Nigerians Sliding into Poverty Due to Rising Healthcare Cost
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has estimated that about 80 per cent of Nigeria’s population has fallen into poverty as they struggle to pay hospital bills.
This was just as the Senate on Tuesday considered two critical bills seeking to tackle poverty and put a stop to intellectual property theft in the country.
For WHO, its Technical Officer on Health Financing, Dr. Francis Nwachukwu Ukwuije, who revealed this while speaking at a meeting with management of the Nigeria Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), in Abuja Tuesday, said the country could make healthcare more affordable and accessible.
He said: ” You are aware that in Nigeria today we have very high out of pocket expenditure of more than 70 per cent on health and over 50 per cent of the population and in some states up to 80 per cent of Nigeria’s population have to fall into poverty due to ill health or due to payment for healthcare.”
He further said efforts at implementing compulsory health insurance in Nigeria was as important as advancing development of the country.
“I wish to state that as WHO, we have the mandate to support member states in their priority areas and we can see that financing health insurance is one of the accelerators that the country has chosen and also primary healthcare towards universal health coverage,” he said.
The WHO team was at the NHIA headquarters to kick-start engagement that would ensure proper and effective implementation of the newly enacted law on mandatory health insurance for Nigerians.
Ukwuije said the WHO’s mission to the NHIA was useful for the reasons that, first-it would help to support the NHIA and energise it towards operationalising the new law in order to gain the benefits therein.
“Secondly, to ensure that we have good representation and high level of advocacy to the government of Nigeria and to those who make the laws and policies in the country. Thirdly, to support the country in mopping up areas of health financing for the attainment of the Universal health coverage,” he said.
The Country Representative for WHO in Nigeria, Dr. Walter Kazadi Molumbo said the 3-day engagement would provide an opportunity for the global health body to interact with the leadership of NHIA.
He said WHO believes that it was the best way to go if Nigeria was to achieve the universal health coverage.
“It is a good opportunity for us and it is a privilege to be part of this high level advocacy meeting to review strategies on how we will operationalise this health insurance authority bill and how WHO can offer support to strengthen NHIA to deliver in it’s mandated.
“We also want to use this opportunity to interact with as many stakeholders as possible to enable the NHIA to drive the universal health coverage in Nigeria,” he said.
While welcoming the WHO team, the Director General of the NHIA, Prof. Mohammed Sambo said he was elated to receive them, adding that together with his management, they would be able to set the right template to drive an all-inclusive health insurance financing for Nigeria.
He said the team would oversee the setting up of critical building block of the healthcare delivery system in Nigeria.
Sambo also said the significance of the assent to the new mandatory health insurance scheme by President Muhammed Buhari was that more Nigerians would now be able to benefit from good healthcare delivery system.
“By signing that law, the president has not only exhibited commitment to achieving the next level agenda of the healthcare delivery system, but also that of delivering the democratic dividends to Nigerians,” he said.
Sambo said there was no gainsaying that healthcare was one of the critical elements of development.
He said it had been acknowledged the best way to attain universal health coverage in Nigeria was to ensure that, “we provide financial assistance to the people to enable them have unhindered access to healthcare.”
“And the veritable means of providing this assistance is through health insurance,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Senate on Tuesday considered two critical bills seeking to tackle poverty and put a stop to intellectual property theft in the country.
One of the bills provides for the establishment of the National Poverty Alleviation Management Commission; while the other seeks to re-enact the Patent and Design Act 2021 to revise the existing intellectual property law to prohibit theft.
Both bills scaled second reading during plenary.
The bill to establish the National Poverty Alleviation Management Commission seeks to empower the Commission to coordinate and regulate all forms of poverty alleviation funds.
The bill was sponsored by Senator Kabir Abdullahi Barkiya (APC – Katsina Central).
Leading debate on the general principles of the bill, Barkiya said its passage and assent into law, “will have tremendous and vital impact on the reduction of poverty level, ravaging the majority of citizens in the country.”
According to the lawmaker, this includes the poor and their families who find it difficult to feed themselves.
He explained that the proper and efficient management of poverty alleviation funds through sufficient regulation would drastically cut-down on the poverty rate in Nigeria.
“It is imperative to note, that the passage of this bill will effectively and efficiently regulate all forms of funds provided to alleviate poverty in the land, especially to remedy the suffering of our citizens.
“This aforementioned fund could be granted by the government, or international and local donations in order to minimise the high level of hardship that people go through within the country”, the lawmaker said.
Contributing to the debate, Senator Christopher Ekpenyong (PDP – Akwa-Ibom North West), described the bill as “bi-partisan”.
He lamented that resources allocated for poverty alleviation most times do not get to the poor as a result of mismanagement.
He observed that having a Commission in place as intended by the bill would see to the realisation of the objectives of the federal government in the aspect of poverty reduction.
On his part, Senator Ibrahim Gobir (APC – Sokoto East) recalled that a similar bill was passed under the eighth senate but failed to receive presidential assent.
He, therefore, advised the President to sign the bill into law, adding that putting in place management models to determine the level of impact made through programmes targeted at poverty alleviation would, to a large extent, compliment the bill.
The bill after consideration was referred by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, to the Committee on Poverty Alleviation for further inputs.
The Committee was given four weeks to report back to the Senate in plenary.
An elderstatesman and legal icon, Chief Afe Babalola, has bagged the 2024 Best Nigerian Patriot Award for his outstanding performance in humanitarian activities, provision of quality education as well as promotion of peace.
The award was given at an induction ceremony and technical workshop for the inauguration and certification of UN Ambassadors for Peace on Thursday in Abuja.
The event with the theme, “Effective Approach to Anger Management and Tolerance as Panacea for Global Peace and Sustainable Development,” was organised by the Association of UN Ambassadors for Peace (ASUNAP).
The award was organised in collaboration with The Mighty One Empowerment Foundation (TEMOEFA) to support the United Nations efforts in promoting global peace and ethnic tolerance.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that no fewer than 10 persons were also inducted and certified as UN Ambassadors for Peace.
A former Minister of Education, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, who received the award on behalf of Babalola, said the association had done considerable research to come up with the nomination.
“It is one thing for individuals to be playing some roles, but it’s another thing for these roles to be recognised and to be appreciated by the society.
“As a scholar and a researcher, I know that when you do a thorough research into what individuals have contributed in this particular area, one would see that it would be difficult to find someone who has contributed more than Are Afe Babalola.
“This is quite evident from his forays into different areas of national life and continental life of Africa,” he said.
Adeniran called on Nigerians to key into the humanitarian gestures carried out by Babalola.
According to him, if more Nigerians embrace peace and conflict resolution, a lot would be achieved for the country and for humanity.
“This is because there is nothing as precious as peace; without peace, you will not have a stable polity.
“Without peace, there will be no development and love among the people.
“You will not be able to advance to the level where you can say you have reached the optimum.
“The ultimate goal of society is to actualise the potential of citizens, and to be able to get the very best for people.
“I will certainly encourage and plead with Nigerians to key into this, to do their very best, starting from the local, family, community and societal level,” he said.
Also speaking, the Global Director of Interfaith for ASUNAP, Emmanuel Emeka, said the event was aimed at recognising Nigerians in order to promote peace in the society.
Emeka said the association had holistically and comprehensively taken the data of Babalola’s performance, his impact in Nigeria and beyond and found him worthy of the award.
He said that voting was conducted across the nooks and crannies of the country, adding that his name came up with the highest number of votes among nominations.
He said the newly inducted ambassadors would be involved in conflict resolution and peacemaking.
In a keynote address, the Guest Speaker, Prof. Casmiar Obialom, charged the ambassadors not to give war a chance.
He noted that the cumulative effect of not implementing a Mrshall Plan of Action to abate the incidence of impunity had been the root cause of conflicts in society.
Among Nigerians inducted into the association were retired Brig.-Gen. Nuhu Milah, retired Commandant Anthony Nwegbo, Prof. Abiodun Ajibade, Maxwell Abubu, Mrs Comfort Arinze and Dr Raphael Gajere.
Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno State has inaugurated three boards in the health sector and ordered a comprehensive overhaul of the state’s healthcare system to address pressing challenges.
The boards inaugurated on Thursday at the Council Chamber of the Government House, Maiduguri, include the Borno State Hospital Management Board, the Borno State Primary Healthcare Development Board and the Kashim Ibrahim University Teaching Hospital Management Board.
Speaking during the ceremony, Zulum said that reforms are necessary to strengthen the delivery of healthcare services, particularly at the primary level.
He added that “we are currently witnessing pressure on our secondary health facilities because primary healthcare is weak.
I want you to assess all hospitals individually and identify challenges related to staffing, equipment and medical supplies so that we can address the issues holistically.”
The governor also directed the boards to work toward resolving the problem of inadequate facilities, staffing and essential medical supplies.
Zulum also inaugurated the Borno State Local Government Service Commission Board, which comprises a chairman and four permanent commissioners.
He emphasised that the reforms and inaugurated boards are part of his administration’s commitment to providing accessible and efficient healthcare to the people.
Prof. Ahmed Ahidjo, the Chairman of the Kashim Ibrahim Teaching Hospital Management Board and Alhaji Modu Alhaji Musa, the Chairman, Local Government Service Commission, expressed gratitude for the honour given to them to serve and pledged to justify the confidence reposed in them.
The Kaduna State Water Services Regulatory Commission (KADWREC) says it is partnering media practitioners towards revamping water services in the state.
Mr Dogara Bashir, the Executive Chairman of KADWREC, disclosed this on Monday at a one-day workshop organised for media practitioners on regulation of ‘Water, Sanitation and Hygiene’ (WASH) activities held in Kaduna.
Bashir said the commission was aware of the importance of the role media practitioners played in the society.
He stated that the workshop was to provide an avenue to liaise with them as important stakeholders on water supply and sanitation services in the state.
Bashir said: “As media practitioners, we believe you are a gateway to the citizens so, the workshop would acquaint you with some of the regulations already in place so that you can in turn transmit it to the public
“The state of water services in Kaduna State is in dire need of attention and the State Water Corporation and KADWREC were established towards addressing the seeming challenges.
“The commission is mandated to ensure better service delivery and regulation of water and sanitation services in the State.
“The idea is that once the regulations are developed, we send them to the State Ministry of Justice to gazette and then we get the state government to endorse and give the go ahead to commence the implementation of the regulations
“We intend to implement them fully come January, 2025 God willing, as we have embarked on advocacy activities having gone to zones 1 and 2 where we talked to traditional rulers, security agencies and the Judiciary.”
He disclosed that a special Court has already been attached to the commission by the Chief Judge of the State for service providers who may likely violate regulations.
The chairman further said that amongst the commission’s objectives include ensuring security, reliability and quality of service in the production and delivery of water to the consumers as well making regulations to control the sinking of boreholes.
Others included; maximising access to water services by promoting and facilitating consumer connections to distribution systems in urban and rural areas.
According to Bashir, they also include ensuring that regulatory decision-making has regards to all the relevant health, safety, environmental and social legislation applying to the water sector.
Bashir further said that the commission collaborate with the relevant state and federal agencies on water policies.
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