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By Asma’u Ahmad
The Health Policy Plus (HP+), in collaboration with Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has inaugurated Health Financing Technical Working Group (HFTWG) to strengthen health financing system in the territory.
Inaugurating the group in Abuja on Monday, the Country Director of HP+, Mr Onoriode Ezire, said the step was taken to improve access to healthcare for the well being of FCT residents.
Mr Ezire explained that FCT was in dire need of sustainable and predictable improvement in its health financing system to make the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) goal achievable.
Mr Onoriode Ezire
He said that the HFTWG would act as catalyst to drive the needed health financing reform in the FCT as is operational at national level.
“This inauguration of the group marks the beginning of our work and the outcome will change the narrative in the health sector in the territory.
“We need to commend the leaders of Health and Human Service Secretariat (HHSS), especially the Secretary, Mrs Amanda Pam, for their commitments to the project.
“HP+ has pedigree and we have the capacity to deliver and we are appealing to FCTA to show more commitment and maximum support,” he said.
The country director disclosed that his organisation had worked in Sokoto, Bauchi and Ebonyi states in 2017 to improve their health systems.
In her remarks, Pam noted that the inauguration of the group was a good development for her secretariat as well as the territory.
Represented by Alhaji Surajo Faskari, the Director Administration and Finance in the secretariat, Pam charged the group to advise, coordinate, report and support roles in the implementation to improve funding of healthcare in FCT.
She described members of the group as passionate and resourceful individuals and organisations that would provide technical support to the health financing unit of the secretariat.
The Chairman of the group, Dr Mohammed Kawu, expressed appreciation to USAID which brought in HP+ to offer such intervention to improve the health system in the territory.
Kawu stated that no state needed this kind of intervention like FCT because of several challenges that confronted it like the case of polio being among the high risk states in the country.
He pledged on behalf of other members to work strictly in accordance with terms of reference and ensure the health policy in FCT was well implemented.
Newsmen report that members of the group were drawn from government establishments, private organisations, health associations and civil society groups, among others.
