The Federal Government has announced plans to distribute critical medical equipment to 251 secondary healthcare facilities nationwide as ongoing reforms in Nigeria’s health sector begin to record improvements in maternal and child healthcare outcomes.
The initiative is being implemented under the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative and the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) Coordination Office domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.
Speaking during a stakeholders’ and media engagement in Abuja ahead of the formal launch of the equipment distribution programme, the National Coordinator of the initiative, Muntaqa Umar-Sadiq, said the reforms were designed to tackle long-standing structural problems in the healthcare system.
He identified poor coordination, inadequate infrastructure, weak data systems, shortage of health workers and limited access to affordable healthcare as some of the major challenges the reforms seek to address.
According to him, the reform agenda aligns with the human capital development priorities of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and focuses on improving governance, accountability and service delivery across all levels of healthcare.
“We speak a lot about one plan, one budget, one report, and one conversation. Governance is at the heart of how we can address these long-standing issues,” Umar-Sadiq said.
He explained that the interventions target both the supply and demand sides of healthcare delivery through the recruitment of community healthcare workers, revitalisation of primary healthcare centres, upgrading of Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEmONC) facilities, and improved provision of equipment and medical commodities.
Umar-Sadiq disclosed that the Federal Government had signed a compact with the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to establish a unified accountability framework for healthcare delivery.
Under the arrangement, federal, state and local governments are assigned specific responsibilities, including quarterly performance reviews, mandatory data reporting and incentive-based financing tied to independently verified results.
Describing the framework as an “ask-and-offer” arrangement, he said the Federal Government would provide technical support and funding, while states would commit to agreed reforms and investments before qualifying for reimbursements.
“For the first time, expectations are clearly documented. States know what they are expected to do, and the Federal Government also has obligations it must fulfil,” he stated.
The coordinator revealed that government had committed to upgrading at least one CEmONC facility in every local government area across the country.
According to him, 774 secondary healthcare facilities providing comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care were assessed nationwide to identify infrastructure and equipment gaps, with 251 facilities eventually selected for support covering operating theatres, laboratories, neonatal units, pharmacies and emergency obstetric care services.
He noted that the intervention would strengthen hospitals’ capacity to manage maternal and neonatal emergencies while reducing preventable deaths.
The upgraded facilities, he added, would also support empanelment under the National Health Insurance Authority reimbursement scheme, enabling more Nigerians to access reimbursed maternal healthcare services.
Umar-Sadiq further disclosed that more than 3,000 primary healthcare centres had already been revitalised nationwide in partnership with state governments and the National Primary Health Care Development Agency.
Of the revitalised facilities, he said 808 are located in 172 high-burden local government areas responsible for about 55 per cent of maternal deaths in Nigeria.
He also revealed that over 3,000 community healthcare workers had been recruited and deployed to underserved communities to improve access to frontline healthcare services.
According to him, emergency transportation systems and referral mechanisms are also being strengthened to ensure pregnant women experiencing complications can be quickly transferred from primary healthcare centres to referral hospitals.
Umar-Sadiq stated that 259 healthcare facilities had already been empanelled under the NHIA reimbursement initiative, while more than 42,000 women and newborns had benefited from free caesarean sections and other reimbursed obstetric services.
He highlighted ongoing efforts to improve access to essential medicines through a pooled procurement initiative known as Medipool, which is expected to reduce stock-outs, lower costs and improve quality assurance across the health sector.
Providing updates on the programme’s impact, the coordinator said utilisation of healthcare services had increased significantly in targeted local government areas, with more than 2.1 million pregnant women accessing antenatal care services in priority communities.
He added that skilled birth attendance and facility-based deliveries had improved, while maternal mortality rates in participating facilities had declined.
Umar-Sadiq described the progress as evidence that the sector-wide reform strategy was beginning to deliver measurable improvements in healthcare delivery and maternal health outcomes nationwide.
He noted that data-driven decision-making remained central to the programme, with authorities routinely tracking indicators such as maternal mortality, healthcare worker deployment, facility revitalisation, commodity availability and emergency response systems.
The coordinator also disclosed that lessons from previous interventions, including the Midwives Service Scheme, had informed the current implementation strategy.
Under the arrangement, states are expected to gradually absorb the salaries of newly recruited healthcare workers into their payroll systems over a three-year period to ensure sustainability beyond federal and donor funding support.
He, however, acknowledged that some states, including Lagos State, Delta State and Rivers State, were still addressing issues related to fiscal planning, accommodation and long-term workforce absorption.
Umar-Sadiq added that government was also investing in training institutions, health technology schools and accommodation facilities to strengthen workforce expansion and improve welfare for healthcare workers nationwide.
