Governor Sule Flags Off N6bn Akwanga Specialist Hospital Project

Nasarawa State governor, Engr, Abdullahi Sule, has performed the groundbreaking of the phase one construction, expansion and conversion of the General Hospital, Akwanga, into a specialist hospital.

The project, with an initial sum of N6 billion, includes a trauma centre and a five-storey building equipped with modern diagnostic facilities.

LEADERSHIP reports that the specialist hospital was relocated from Lafia to Akwanga following the establishment of the Federal University Teaching Hospital in the state capital.

At the ceremony, Governor Sule said the decision to relocate and upgrade the facility to Akwanga was a deliberate move to spread tertiary healthcare infrastructure across the state’s three senatorial zones for fairness and efficiency.

The governor explained that, having established the Federal Teaching Hospital in Lafia and donated the Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital to the federal government, it became necessary to create a new state-owned specialist hospital for the northern zone.

“We are fully aware that for many years, the residents of Akwanga and surrounding communities have depended on this hospital for basic medical services, with all its challenges. But a healthy population is essential for economic growth,” the governor said.

He disclosed that the facility, when completed, would improve advanced diagnostic and treatment services, and create a more efficient, patient-centered environment that supports quality care.

He charged the contractor handling the project with delivering quality work within the agreed timeline and assured them of prompt payment.

The commissioner for Health, Dr Gaza Gwamna, described the day as historic, noting that since the creation of the state in 1996, no civilian governor had invested so heavily in tertiary healthcare.

The project consultant, Senator Hussaini Egyegbola, provided insight into the scope of work, revealing that the existing structures would be brought back into service while new ones would be added.

He promised that upon completion, the five-storey building and trauma centre would be the best in the North Central region.

“The big elephant in the room is the trauma centre. We have trauma centres in Jos and Abuja, but we have designed this one to be a training and research centre where medical fellows will always come. The highest building here is going to be a five-storey building, a very modern facility that will attract international partners in healthcare delivery,” Egyegbola said.