FG Exploring Alternative Sources to Improve Healthcare Funding in Nigeria – VP Osinbajo

President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to finding lasting solutions to the challenges of healthcare delivery and funding in Nigeria, including exploring alternative sources, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo stated this today at the Presidential Villa when he received a delegation from the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), an international public-private partnership committed to increasing access to immunization.

He said government was considering several options including working on some of the recommendations by the alliance, to improve Nigeria’s healthcare system.

According to him, “the funding of our health care system especially for a country this size cannot depend on the budgetary allocation alone. There is clearly a need to look at alternative sources of funding, and clearly international donor funding cannot bridge that gap when you look at what is required for Nigeria.”

Speaking further on the challenges faced by Nigeria in the health sector and what the government is doing to address them, Prof. Osinbajo said, “There is no question at all that we realise the enormity of the problems and we are committed to working with partners and agencies like the GAVI alliance to solve them and ensuring that we are able to reverse some of the very depressing statistics about our healthcare system.”

He said: “Given some of the demographic details that we expect to see in next 10 to 15 years, I think there is certainly need for a much permanent way of funding the health system, that is why we are working on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and see what we can get from that.

“I think you can certainly rely on the commitment of the Federal Government and Mr President to this particular issue, we are looking at all the various options and we hope that we will be able to work with some of the recommendations made by the Minister of Health.”

He added that government was also working in partnership with state governments under the auspices of the National Economic Council (NEC) to encourage the adoption of best practices endorsed by the Federal Government.

According to the Vice President, “we are going to call a special session of the National Economic Council, we have had a previous one where some of the information and statistics were shared.”

Earlier in his remarks, the CEO of GAVI and leader of the delegation, Mr Seth Berkley, called for increased funding for immunization activities and the general healthcare system in the country.

The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole had earlier said that the Ministry was holding talks with the visiting GAVI delegation to Nigeria on the country and GAVI could collaborate in matters of healthcare in Nigeria.

The GAVI delegation comprised representatives from the World Bank, DFID, and other organizations.

The delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Villa by the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, Minister of State for Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, the Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity)
Office of the Vice President
6th March, 2018.

Press Statement: Response to Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s Letter By The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed on January 24, 2018

We have read the press statement by former President Olusegun Obasanjo on the State of the Nation.

For the record, Chief Obasanjo is a patriot, and he has proven this time and time again. We appreciate what he said concerning the Administration’s performance in two out of the three key issues that formed the plank of its campaign: Fighting corruption and tackling insurgency. Specifically, the former President said President Buhari must be given credit for his achievement so far in these two areas. We thank him for this.

Apparently, the former President believes that the Administration does not deserve a pass mark in the area of the economy, which is the third of our three-pronged campaign promises.

We have no doubt that in the face of massive challenges in this area, this Administration has availed itself creditably. We believe that Chief Obasanjo, because of his very busy schedule, may not have been fully availed of developments in the government’s efforts to revamp the economy, which was battered by the consequences of over-dependence on a commodity as well as unprecedented pillaging of the treasury.

Today, most of the indices by which an economy is measured are looking up. Permit me to say, however, that Nigeria would not have exited recession through a mere order or if the Administration had not made use of ”good Nigerians” who could help.

This Administration is making steady progress in its determined effort to revamp the economy, and the results are showing:

* Foreign Reserves have peaked at $40b, the highest level in about four years, and up from $24 billion just a year ago, even though when we came in, the price of oil had crashed woefully.

* According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBC), headline inflation has fallen for 11 consecutive months, standing at 15.37% as at Dec. 2017. This is the lowest inflation rate since Jan 2017, and it has met and surpassed the target set for inflation in the Administration’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

* Our determined implementation of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) has stopped the hemorrhaging of the treasury. Some 108 billion Naira has been saved from removal of maintenance fees payable to banks, pre-TSA. The nation is being saved 24.7 billion Naira monthly with the full implementation of the TSA.

* The elimination of ghost workers has saved the nation 120 billion Naira

* At about 1.8 billion dollars, the capital inflows in the second quarter of 2017 were almost double the $908 million in the first quarter.

* In the wake of a stable Naira and increased investment inflows, Nigeria’s stock market emerged one of the best-performing in the world, delivering returns in excess of 40 percent.

* Nigeria rose 24 places on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking, and earned a place on the List of Top 10 Reformers in the world.

* According to Q3 2017 figures, agriculture export is up year-on-year by 25%, solid minerals exports are up year-on-year by 78%, raw materials exports are up 70% year-on-year and manufactured goods exports are up 22% year-on-year.

* Government agencies such as the Nigeria Customs Service are reporting highest ever revenue collection, while JAMB, under the new management appointed by President Buhari in 2016, remitted N7.8 billion to the coffers of the federal government. The total amount remitted by JAMB between 2010 and 2016 was a paltry N51 million!

These positive indices may not have immediately impacted positively on Nigerians, but Nigerians will definitely get a new lease of life a short while from now. This is because the good news from the agricultural sector, which is recording a bumper harvest, will bring down the cost of foodstuffs, especially such staple as rice, and our massive Social Investment Programme will ease the pain of the most vulnerable in the society.

When we assumed office in 2015, some 6 million farmers were involved in rice production. Thanks to the Anchor Borrowers’ programme of this Administration, we have grown that number to over 12 million farmers. The result is that our rice import from Thailand alone has dropped from 644,000 metric tonnes to 22,000 MT in just two years. This is phenomenal.

Apart from rice, Nigeria is also doing well in other grains, especially Millet, Sorghum and Maize. We are now the second largest producer of sorghum after the US, the third in millet after India and our breweries are now enjoying local sourcing of those commodities.

For maize, we are producing 10 million tons while we need about 13 million tons for both human and animal nutrition. Nigeria leads the world in the yam and cassava production. We account for 70% of the world’s yam production. In two years, we hope to be the world’s largest exporter of yam! Overall, our ambition is that agriculture should rise from 25% to 40% of GDP, so that we can banish poverty and overcome our economic anxiety.

Our Social Investment Programme is Nigeria’s most ambitious social welfare programme ever. Currently, 5.2 million primary school children in 28,249 schools in 19 states are being fed daily; 200,000 unemployed graduates have enlisted into the N-power Job Scheme, and a quarter of a million loans already distributed to artisans, traders, and farmers.

Finally, our investment in infrastructure is simply unprecedented. This is because infrastructure is key to faster economic growth and development.

Here is a synopsis of what we have done in this area:

* Power Generation at an all-time high of 7,000mw and all can be transmitted

* RAIL: Lagos-Kano Standard Gauge is on. Lagos-Ibadan sector ready 2019, Kano Kaduna ready 2019; The entire stretch ready 2021; Negotiations on for Coastal Rail covering 15 cities from Lagos to Calabar.

* ROAD: 25 major highways being funded with the N100b Sukuk Bond, and all geo political zones are benefitting equally

This Administration is not unaware of the enormity of the challenges facing the nation, but we are up to the task. We have taken the bull by the horns, and long suffering Nigerians will begin to experience a new lease of life as our efforts yield fruits. We will not go into a state of funk for whatever reason.

On the Herders/Farmers’ clashes, this Administration is determined to end the crisis resulting from this once and for all, not minding the fact that the clashes predate us. we urge Nigerians to have faith in the Administration’s ability to resolve the crisis, and to watch out for concrete measures in this regard.

On whether or not President Muhammadu Buhari should run for another term, it is true that many Nigerians have been calling on the President to run again, while others are opposed to his return.

However, we believe this issue is a distraction for the President at this time. This is because Mr. President spends every waking hour tackling the enormous challenges facing the nation, most of which were bequeathed to his Administration by successive past Administrations.

He is committed to fulfilling the mandate given to him by Nigerians in 2015. And that’s where we are right now!

Finally, we have no reason to believe that former President Obasanjo has any motive beyond the well-being of the nation in issuing his Special Press Statement. We have also taken his admonition in good faith, and we thank him most sincerely for taking time off his busy schedule to pen such a long statement.

Press Release: Buhari’s Presidency Begins National Consultation on Farmers-Herders Conflict

Following his visit to Adamawa State on the 5th of December 2017 in the wake of the communal clashes in the area, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, has today, Monday, 11th December 2017, commenced a series of national consultations with all relevant groups designed to find a lasting solution to the farmers-herders conflict in parts of the country.

Today’s meeting, the first in the series, held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, and had in attendance the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II; the Lamido of Adamawa, Muhammadu Barkindo Aliyu Musdafa; elder statesman, Mallam Ahmed Joda; and other leaders of the Fulani communities. Subsequent meetings would focus on other interest groups.

At the meeting, previous reports on the conflict were presented by the delegation and causes of the conflict were analysed. The meeting unequivocally condemned the acts of violence that has occurred, especially the killing of children and women, and highlighted the need for Law Enforcement and other Government Agencies to dutifully and objectively perform their Constitutional roles.

The Vice President assured the delegation of the Federal Government’s resolve and commitment to the entrenchment of lasting peace in all communities across the country and the resolution of all legitimate grievances.

He said “There is nothing much more important now, in showing our leadership, beyond preventing tragedy and destruction of everything we have built as a nation. The entire Nigeria enterprise is bigger than other interests. The overall objective is ensuring that our nation is not enveloped by another crisis.”

According to the Vice President, “We now have an opportunity to do something. We have the opportunity to resolve the issues and to build a nation where we and our children can live in peace.”

Already, following the Vice President’s visit to Adamawa State last week, several food items and relief materials have been distributed to all the affected communities in the State, including Shafaron, Kodomti, Tullum, Mzoruwe and Mararraban Bare in Numan Local Government Area. Others communities that have received relief materials are Dong, Lawaru and Kukumso in Demsa Local Government Area of the State.

In the next series of meetings, the Vice President will meet with the Batta, Bachama and other groups from Adamawa State; while meetings with stakeholders from other conflict-affected States would follow.

Also at the meeting were Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Musa Bello.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity
Office of the Vice President
11 December 2017