FG Commits To Achieving Universal Health Coverage

The federal government has reiterated its commitment to achieving universal health coverage and improving maternal healthcare.

The Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr. Salma Ibrahim-Anas, made this known in Abuja at the Association of Health Journalists Conference.

The Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr. Salma Ibrahim-Anas emphasized that the government is working tirelessly to change the healthcare trajectory.

She highlighted commitments being made to strengthen local government autonomy, upgrade tertiary institutions, and improve referral systems within the grassroots healthcare framework.

Dr Salma also acknowledged the country’s poor performance in antenatal care, skilled birth attendance, and family planning uptake, while calling for innovative approaches to address these challenges.

In a goodwill message, the Coordinator, Africa Health Budget Network, Aminu Garba Magashi emphasized that a free, independent, and vibrant media is essential for achieving meaningful change in the health sector.

He stressed the need for the media to hold governments and organizations accountable for their promises and actions.

According to Magashi “we firmly believe in the power of informed advocacy, and we recognize the crucial role that health journalists like yourselves play in the development of our health systems and the protection of citizens’ rights.”

He explained further that “educating the public, holding policymakers accountable, and ensuring that health issues remain on the national agenda is indispensable, not just in Nigeria, but across the continent. You are, in many ways, the bridge between complex health policies and the communities who need to understand and benefit from them.”

Magashi recognized that a free, independent, and vibrant media is essential to achieving meaningful change in the health sector.

While highlighting preventative measures for HIV/AIDS, Dr. Charles Imogie of the Institute of Human Virology noted that, in addition to post-exposure prophylaxis, pre-exposure measures are available to prevent the disease, which still has no cure.

Florence Adewale, Edited By Grace Namiji