Stakeholders Seek Reforms To Strengthen Nigeria’s Health System

Stakeholders in the health sector have renewed calls for stronger evidence-based policymaking, innovative solutions and sustainable financing to reverse the country’s poor health indices.

They made the call at the 2025 National Health Dialogue, themed: “Evidence, Innovation and Financing for a Healthier Nigeria, organised by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) in Abuja at the weekend.

Speaking at the event, executive secretary of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Muyi Aina, said the government was aligning priorities using data, rather than political sentiments to address decades-long health gaps.

According to him, Nigeria has only four years in its current governance cycle to make impactful changes, making strategic prioritisation essential.

He noted that maternal mortality remained one of the most pressing challenges, worsened by lack of equitable access to quality primary healthcare.

“When a pregnant woman cannot access care or reach a facility where she can receive quality services, we are setting her up for tragedy. That is why crushing maternal mortality is one of government’s top priorities,” he said.

In his keynote address, the World Health Organisation (WHO) country representative, Dr. Pavel Ursu, stressed that Nigeria’s health system must be anchored on evidence, innovation and sustainable financing.

While acknowledging recent reforms under the National Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative, he warned that Nigeria still invests too little in health, just 4.27 per cent of GDP, and relies heavily on out-of-pocket spending.

He also highlighted progress in immunisation coverage and maternal health initiatives like the MAMII project, but noted that gaps persist, especially in rural communities.

He reaffirmed WHO’s commitment to supporting Nigeria in strengthening data systems, digital health regulation, and health financing reforms.

In his welcome address, CJID Founder and Premium Times Publisher, Dapo Olorunyomi, said the country’s health crisis was rooted not in lack of resources but poor governance, weak accountability and inadequate prioritisation.

“When mothers die from preventable causes, that is a governance failure. When children miss vaccines because health centres have no supplies, that is a governance failure,” he said.

Olorunyomi emphasised that despite Nigeria’s commitments, including the Abuja Declaration, most states still allocate less than 5 per cent of their budgets to health.

He said investigative journalism remains crucial for exposing gaps in health financing, regulation, and service delivery, adding that leadership must now match rhetoric with action.

Delivering a goodwill message, Premium Times managing editor, Idris Akinbajo, cited new data from the 2024 Demographic and Health Survey showing severe gaps in states’ health performance.

He cited Jigawa and Akwa Ibom, where maternal and child deaths remain high despite increased spending on political perks and luxury items.

In Akwa Ibom, he said, the government spent N1.3 billion on SUVs for lawmakers, enough to pay salaries for more than 8,000 needed PHC workers for three years.

CJID pledged to continue strengthening health journalism to deepen public understanding and support evidence-based reforms.

This year’s event brought together top government officials, health experts, civil society actors, journalists, and development partners to discuss the urgent reforms needed to strengthen the country’s health system.