PRESS STATEMENT ON THE 2019 WORLD HEALTH DAY: MAKING HEALTH WORK FOR ALL

Sunday April 7 2018
PRESS STATEMENT ON THE 2019 WORLD HEALTH DAY: MAKING HEALTH WORK FOR ALL

On the occasion of the 2019 World Health Day, Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a Nigerian Knowledge Institution calls on the Federal Government of Nigeria, States and Local Governments to be re-dedicated to the attainment of the highest attainable standard of health for all Nigerians by ensuring Universal Health Coverage for every Nigerian across the Federation.

We recall that Nigeria is underperforming on all key indicators and building blocks of health including governance and stewardship for health, health financing, human resources for health, medicines, vaccines, health technologies and research. Others are health management information system, health promotion, community ownership and partnerships as well as service delivery. We also recall that our health indicators in life expectancy, maternal newborn and child health, doctor-patient ratio, etc. are well below acceptable standards.

We recognize the fact that the implementation of the National Health Act (NHA) has been very poor with budgetary provisions for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund made for the first time in the 2018 federal budget. However, releases for the implementation of the said Fund has been less than 50% of appropriation. We also recognise the very poor funding of the health sector by the Federal and State Governments, especially the fact that the 2019 federal projection is 4.14% of the overall budget. While we understand that Nigeria faces resource challenges, we affirm that the poor budgetary votes to the health sector is not necessarily a product of the resource challenge but one of poor prioritisation of the sector in the scheme of things.

We take note that less than 5% of Nigerians have access to health insurance and Nigeria’s out of pocket health expenditure is one of the highest in the world. We also take note of the parlous state of public health insurance schemes across the country, from the National Health Insurance Scheme to the fledging and emergent State Health Insurance Schemes.
In the light of the foregoing, CSJ calls on Federal, State and Local Governments to ensure the:
• Availability of functional public health and health care facilities, goods and services as well as programmes to be made available in sufficient quantity and quality. This would require increased public funding of the health sector and deriving greater value for money from available funding. The full implementation of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund as provided in the NHA is a minimum condition for improvement funding of the sector.

• Accessibility of health goods, facilities and services to everyone without discrimination for vulnerable and marginalized groups. Accessibility should also include economic accessibility or affordability, information accessibility and physical accessibility. Health insurance should be made compulsory for all Nigerians who earn the minimum wage and above. This will include workers and all Nigerians in the formal and informal sectors of the economy. Public health insurance schemes should be managed by competent and knowledgeable persons who have a high degree of integrity. Persons who cannot afford to pay the minimum premium should be taken care of by the State.

• Provision of quality and acceptable health services and facilities in response to the predominant diseases and health challenges facing the nation. Government should tackle the brain drain that ensures that highly qualified medical personnel leave our shores.
The foregoing are irreducible minimum demands to guarantee that everyone can obtain the care they need, when they need it, right in the heart of the community.

                             Eze Onyekpere                                                                   Victor Emejuiwe
                              Lead Director                                                   Programme Manager, Good Governance

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