President Bola Tinubu has given approval for the immediate upgrade of 16 health institutions across all six geo-political zones in the country.
He has directed the immediate upgrading of infrastructure and equipment in these institutions.
The institutions include Lagos University Teaching Hospital in Surulere, and Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital in Zaria.
Among these institutions, six teaching hospitals are targeted for the establishment of oncology and nuclear medicine centers, each to be completed within 12 – 18 months.
The modernizations align with his administration’s vision of transforming the health and social welfare sector, ensuring that world-class cancer diagnosis and care is accessible to all Nigerians,” according to a statement from the Presidency signed by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale.
The statement, titled ‘President Tinubu approves immediate upgrade of key health infrastructure across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones,’ emphasizes that aside from LUTH and ABUTH, the four other teaching hospitals are the University of Benin Teaching Hospital in Edo State, University of Nigeria (Nsukka) Teaching Hospital in Enugu State, Federal Teaching Hospital in Katsina, and University of Jos Teaching Hospital in Plateau State.
Tinubu has also approved critical health care service expansion projects across the fields of radiology, clinical pathology, medical and radiation oncology, and cardiac catheterization in 10 hospitals across all geo-political zones.
These hospitals include Reference Hospital in Kaduna (North-West), Medical Diagnostic Centre Complex in Enugu (South-East), Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital in Sokoto (North-West), University College Hospital in Ibadan (South-West), and University of Uyo Teaching Hospital in South-South.
Also included are Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital in Bauchi (North-East), Federal Medical Centre in Asaba (South-South), Harmony Advanced Diagnostic Centre Complex in Ilorin (North-Central), Jos University Teaching Hospital in North-Central, and Federal Medical Centre in Nguru (North-East).
Ngelale mentioned that the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, in collaboration with the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, will carry out the comprehensive upgrade of the cancer-treatment infrastructure and other critical developments, as well as renovate and expand prior investments to improve access to high-quality healthcare nationwide.
“These critical projects, set to be delivered within 12-18 months, will improve screening and diagnostics for communicable and non-communicable diseases, reduce mortality rates, and improve outcomes for non-communicable diseases,” he added.
They are also expected to create considerable employment opportunities for clinical, administrative, and managerial personnel across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones, while also enhancing the capacity of clinical personnel in advanced procedures, diagnostics, and treatment modalities, in line with the administration’s eight priority areas.
