By Chimezie Godfrey
The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), has restated its commitment to strengthen primary healthcare services at national, states and local government levels.
It also described the health sector as one of the most important to the administration of president Muhammadu Buhari.
The Executive Secretary, Faisal Shuaib said the Federal government of Nigeria for the very first time, has set aside N55 billion in 2019 budget towards providing basic health services for all Nigerians.
He said this during one year anniversary of the technical support program and Leadership development academy first cohort graduation on Monday in Abuja.
The primary Healthcare under one Roof (PHCUOR) is a reform agenda driven by Federal government of Nigeria seeks to reverse the fragmentation of the primary healthcare delivery at sub-national levels, states and local by centralizing the health management, human resources, financing and operational responsibilities under one state level body- the state primary healthcare board.
“We have observed with deep analysis that there is a lack of coherent where state relate with NPHCDA and the ministry of health in terms of asking for technical support so there are area about capacity building around primary Heath care and how we can build primary Heath care workers.
“What this technical support programme domiciled within the primary health care agancy does is to coordinate all of the technical assistance in a way that every body is brought on board.
“All the stakeholders understand the technicality involved in technical assistance and even on the part of the NPHCDA we are able to understand the gap in primary Heath care delivery, he said.
“What we have done at the Federal ministry of health and primary Heath care agancy and Nigeria insurance scheme and Nigeria insurance for disease control is to look at those funds inline with in provision of the 2014 red art, and say how do we identify one primary care for one ward that this fund will be channelled directly to.
“In a way the fund are not kept in Abuja, the funds are sent directly to the state and primary health care centers so that those funds will be used for renovations for the primary Heathcare centers,” he said.
He said the provision of Health services is to provide eletricity, water, human resources, adding that some of the health facilities do not have the human resources (the nurses, the midwives that it requires to provide services.
He further said that the drugs, the commodity, engaging with the community, and creating demand for the services is what the primary health care services is for, adding that the 55 billion that has been provided had been channeled already to the state level.
