Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Ali Pate has announced that a redesign of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) was ongoing to make it more efficient in delivering quality healthcare to Nigerians.
Director, Press and Public Relations of the Ministry disclosed this in a statement issued on Thursday, November 16, 2023.
According to the statement, the Minister made the announcement at the opening ceremony of the ongoing 64th National Council on Health with the Theme: ‘Building a Resilient and Inclusive Healthcare System for a Healthy Nigeria’ holding from 13th – 17th November 2023 in Ado Ekiti Ekiti State.
“We are redesigning the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), established by NHA 2014, to become more effective and efficient in driving the strategic shifts and priority initiatives that will see us moving towards accomplishing our ambitious but achievable goals and objectives.” The Minister stated.
He reiterated the efforts of the Federal Government to put in place the necessary structure and framework to effectively and efficiently coordinate programmes to address the wider determinants of health since it is realized that a lot of the determinants of health are outside the direct control of the Health Sector.
According to him, the Sub-Themes were carefully chosen to: “Highlight the priorities of the sector; encourage us to take stock of our journey, putting into consideration the reality of the times; and remind us of our ultimate goal of achieving a system that ensures that all people have access to needed health services (including prevention, promotion, treatment, rehabilitation and palliation) of sufficient quality to be effective while also ensuring that the use of these services does not expose the user the financial hardship.”
He opined that the health of the people is a fundamental human right. “It is a measure of our commitment to equity, justice, and the dignity of every individual. Achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is not a choice; it is an obligation, a promise to provide quality healthcare to all regardless of their socioeconomic status. It is the embodiment of our vision for a healthier and more prosperous nation and a strategic advantage for us as a nation.”
Addressing some of the health issues, Pate said that the Ministry had embarked on a ‘diagnosis to action’ system-wide initiative, taking briefs from all levels and consulting with all relevant stakeholders to achieving Universal Health Coverage adding that this has led to a 4-point blueprint with cross-cutting enablers: Effective governance; Efficient, equitable and quality health systems; Unlocking value chains and Health security.
The Minister said that the Ministry remains at the forefront, to continue to maintain stability in our health sector meet the health needs of our growing population to collectively change our narratives, and foster the progress that we desire, he admonished.
Earlier in his remarks, Minister of State, Dr. Tunde Alausa stated that, “we must take a pragmatic approach on the way we want to respond to our current problems with Human Resource for health; explaining that “while it may be difficult to prevent the migration of individuals for greener pastures, we can respond by increase pool of health workers that we graduate from our institutions on annual basis”.
In his goodwill message, World Health Organisation (WHO) representative in Nigeria, Dr. Walter Mulombo stated his expectations for NCH to leverage the strengths and opportunities of each tier of government to come up with feasible, less complex, and sustainable strategies that will work for the Federal and State Governments in overcoming challenges under the Health Sector Renewal Investment Program reiterating the commitment of WHO towards providing technical support as a member State Organisation towards the healthcare needs of the country.
