By Haruna Gimba
Niger state Government has flagged the rehabilitation Primary Healthcare Centres across the state with a commissioning of its pilot project, a PHC at Beji village in Bosso Local Government Area.
Performing the commissioning ceremony of the PHC in Beji village, the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, expressed happiness with the state government for rehabilitating the PHC and making it functional for the benefit of local communities in the LGA.
Adewole said: “Let me say it clearly: I am the happiest man on earth today. When we made that policy decision that we needed to reposition health care in our country, we formulated a strategy for one functional primary healthcare centre per political ward.
“That implied that we would develop 10,000 PHCs and give access to free and qualitative health care to over 100 million Nigerians. Many people thought it was impossible, but governor Bello has demonstrated that it is possible.
“I want to assure you that for touching the lives of the people, for caring, making the impossible possible, we would work with you, and we would partner with you to provide commodities and human resources.
The Minister urged other state governors to emulate Niger state governor, so as to fast tract the achievement of the Universal Health Coverage.
Professor Adewole also commissioned Infectious Diseases Isolation Centre located within Minna General Hospital in the state capital.
Earlier, Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, said when he took over the mantle of leadership in the state, the PHC centres were not functioning well, he resolved with his cabinet and other health stakeholders to rehabilitate them.
He said: “Our goal in the healthcare agenda is to provide qualitative, sustainable and affordable healthcare service to majority of the masses, especially those living in the rural areas, so that we can improve the health indices in the state as we implement our plan of providing one fully functional PHC in each of the 274 wards in the state.”
The governor also kick started free surgery that is simultaneously ongoing in all the 25 LGAs of the state, in an effort to bring the services to the people in the rural areas who may not be able to afford it.
He said the essence was to address the financial constraints of rural dwellers in accessing qualitative healthcare services in the state.
He also explained that the Infectious Disease Isolation Centre was to prepare against any unexpected outbreak of infectious diseases that may emerge in the state.
Governor Bello called on all stakeholders to partner with the State Government to ensure that all the innovations in the health sector were sustained.
