Reforms in the country’s health sector are being boosted by advocacy tours to the six geo-political zones by Health Minister, Professor Eyitayo Lambo. The minister visited the South East zone from 12 to 18 June 2005 and the North West zone from 24 to 27 July where he held far reaching consultations and sensitisation talks with relevant stakeholders.

The Honourable minister embarked on these Advocacy tours mainly to draw the attention of administrators, health workers, government officials and the community at large to ongoing reforms in the health sector, which are being developed within the context of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS).

The Health sector Reforms, which have already been approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) has seven main thrusts:

. Improving the stewardship role of Government

. Strengthening the national health system at the three levels of care i.e. primary, secondary and tertiary

. Reducing the burden of major diseases like HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis etc through the attainment of the health related Millennium Development Goals

. Improving health resources (human, finance etc) and their management

. Improving access to quality health services

. Promoting private/public partnership, and

. Increasing consumers; awareness of their health rights and obligations

The whole idea behind the tours is to interact with stakeholders on what the federal Government has done as its own part of the responsibility, what is expected from the States and Local Government Councils at the secondary and primary levels of healthcare delivery.

The Federal Government, according to Professor Lambo had refurbished and equipped eight teaching hospitals so far, while six more are in line for restoration, in line with the National Health Policy, which assigns responsibility for tertiary health care funding to it.

Also the federal government is constructing one Model Primary Health Centre at each local government council in the country, which in turn would be turned over to the community after completion, as well as launching of the National Health Insurance Scheme for the formal sector.

The advocacy tour took the Honourable Minister to Ebonyi, Abia, Enugu, Anambra and Imo states in the South East; and Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi states in the North West, where either the state governors or their deputies met him. In each state an Advocacy Interactive Workshop was held with state legislators, Local Council Chairmen and their Health Supervisors, Primary Healthcare Coordinators, staff of states Ministries of Health, representatives of professional bodies, the private sector, health services providers, community-based organisations, NGOs and faith-based organisations.

In the South East, Professor Lambo visited the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, the Neuro-psychiatric Hospital and the National Orthopaedic Hospital in Enugu, as well as the Federal Medical Centres in Abakaliki, Owerri, Umuahia. He also visited the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital in Nnewi.

During interactive workshops with stakeholders, the Honourable Minister came face to face with the achievements, problems and expectations of public healthcare delivery in the zone; whereas progress has been made since the advent of this Administration in the provision of adequate power (through standby generator sets) and water supply and industrial peace prevails due to the settlement of a backlog of unpaid remunerations, more still needed to be done in improving infrastructures and boosting morale.

In the North West, The Honourable Minister toured the Federal Medical Centres in Gusau and Birnin Kebbi, the Comprehensive Health Centre in Kware as well as the Uthman Danfodio University Teaching Hospital Sokoto. He also visited the Noma Hospital in Sokoto, a specialised hospital for the treatment and surgical repair of Cancum Oris (a tropical disease of the eye), which serves the entire country.

At a stakeholders’ interactive workshop on 27 July, Professor Lambo reiterated the goal of the health sector reforms which is to “break the vicious cycle of ill-health, poverty and under-development through the allocation of more funds to the health sector, revamping of the secondary healthcare facilities to ensure good quality referral services for the primary health facilities, and to get local governments to commit at least 40 percent of their total budget to the health sector, out of which only 60 percent should be utilised for staff emoluments, leaving 40 percent for running and maintaining the health facilities”.