Tinubu’s economic reform creates a path for sustainable health financing – Edun

Minister of Economic Coordination and Minister of Finance, Mr. Wale Edun, has said that economic reforms introduced under the administration of President Tinubu’s Bola President opened the door for sustainable health financing and increased access to medical care for Nigeria.

Speaking in the National Health Financing Policy Dialogue in Abuja yesterday, Edun emphasized that prepaid and planned in Prabelined will ease the household load compared to heavy expenses outside the plate at the treatment point.

According to him, main reforms such as the elimination of fuel subsidies, the elimination of monetary financing, fiscal consolidation, and improvements in tax administration have brought stability for the economy, creating fiscal space for investment in health, education, and social protection.

“The more hospitals, the diagnostic and oncology center that we have in Nigeria, fewer Nigerians spent abroad. We can even attract foreign patients, turn Nigeria into a regional center for special health care services,” he said.

Edun noted that the federal allocation for the state has multiplied, providing a greater government capacity to act, while private investment and philanthropy remain important to bridge the health care gap. He added that a broader economic profit – including stronger external reserves, moderate inflation, and a growth rate of 3.4 percent last year – would further support employment, poverty reduction, and stable financing from the social sector.

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Also speaking in dialogue, Senator Ipalibo Banigo, Chair of the Senate Committee for Health, reiterated the commitment of the National Assembly to strengthen laws, technology adoption, and supervision for sustainable health financing.

He highlighted the policy agenda of the four points of the National Assembly: enforcing and strengthening the law, promoting the scope of universal health (UHC), mobilizing sustainable resources through public systems and private partnerships, and improving public financial management to ensure accountability while supporting learning agendas for governance at national and state levels.

Banigo revealed that, for the first time in 2024, funds were allocated for vulnerable group funds, which had allowed free maintenance and included updated health insurance protection for more than 6,000 Nigerians in the vulnerable category. He also announced plans for new disaster health funds designed to help patients who struggled with high diseases such as cancer and liver failure.