By Asma’u Ahmad
The Cross River State Government on Thursday said it had revitalised 54 Primary Healthcare Centres within three years, to boost health service delivery in the state.
The state Commissioner for Health in the state, Dr Inyang Asibong disclosed this at the maiden Cross River Council on Health Conference, held in Calabar.
Asibong said that the revitalisation was carried out with a view to making healthcare service accessible to residents in the state, especially those in the rural areas.
Gov. Benedict Ayade
She said that the objective of the conference was to bring to life the issues of health as it affects stakeholders in the sector.
Newsmen report that the conference was organised on the theme “Cross River State Strategic Health Development Plan II, Road Map to Universal Health Coverage’’.
According to Asibong, it is also aimed at achieving universal health coverage in the state and ensuring a healthy life for all. “We have recorded tremendous achievement in the health sector under Gov. Ben Ayade. For now, we have three functional Primary Healthcare Centres in every local government; this amounts to 54 revitalised centres across the state.
“Moreso, renovation work is ongoing, and very soon, we will put other centres to work. We are also bringing in equipment for maternal health, child health and non-communicable diseases across the centres,” she said.
The Deputy Governor of Cross River, Prof. Ivara Esu, who was also at the event, said that the state government had maintained its position in the country as a frontier in policy formulation, infrastructural development and human capital growth, for the benefit of the state.
Esu said that the Ayade-led administration had recorded successes in the health sector through the establishment of Ayadecare Insurance Scheme, Calabar Pharmaceutical Company, ongoing construction of three Referral Hospitals, rehabilitation of General Hospitals, among others.
According to him, primary healthcare centres across the state have been revitalised with equipment to boost healthcare delivery in the state.
“I want to inform us that Cross River is maintaining the first position as the first state in Nigeria to present before the National Council on Health the Cross River Strategic Health Plan II’’, he said.
The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, said that the Cross River Council on Health meeting was coming at the right time when the second National Strategic Health Development Plan, which is an aggregate of the 36 states, had just been approved by the Federal Executive Council.
Adewole, who was represented by Mr Ali Gubio, said it was worthy of commendation that Cross River was the first state to present its state Strategic Health Development Plan to its council of health for approval on implementation.
He said that the Federal Ministry of Health would continue to partner with the Cross River Government on the way forward in improving universal health coverage in the state.
