By Folasade Akpan
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in the health sector have said Nigeria’s health reforms must move beyond activities and policies to deliver institutionalised, sustainable gains that improve health outcomes and system resilience nationwide.
They made the call under the auspices of the Health Sector Reform Coalition (HSRC) on Monday in Abuja during a CSO and media-led mid-year review of Nigeria’s health-sector reforms.
Mrs Moji Makanjuola, Co-convener of the Nigeria Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Forum, said the true measure of health reform should be whether it is institutionalised, sustained and translated into better outcomes.
“Importantly, this midterm review should move beyond asking whether reforms are producing activities and any results, to asking whether the system is becoming sufficiently resilient to sustain those gains,” she said.
Makanjuola said achieving sustainable reforms required critical attention to leadership and governance, institutional capacity, community ownership, sustainable financing, accountability and the health system’s ability to absorb shocks effectively.
She said the review showed pockets of positive shifts in some health indices, but expressed concern that progress remained uneven, with some states recording stagnant or worsening indicators.
“We must ask not only what is working, but also why it is working, and where it is working, whether it can be replicated, and what is required to sustain it,” she said.
Makanjuola said the UHC Forum and other non-state actors would use the 2027 electoral policy window to seek greater political commitment to health-sector development and reforms.
She said the forum would review its citizen-led health agenda and develop an action plan for implementation before, during and after the 2027 general elections across Nigeria.
According to her, a stakeholders’ workshop will be organised in October with government partners, the HSRC and other stakeholders to strengthen collaboration and advance reform priorities.
Makanjuola said the media remained a critical link between health policies and citizens, urging journalists to focus on evidence-based reporting of reforms, financing, service delivery, equity and access.
She said universal health coverage was a shared national responsibility requiring sustained collaboration, transparency, political commitment and accountability among governments, development partners, civil society and citizens nationwide.
Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), said access to commodities and strong regulatory systems remained essential to achieving UHC.
“We cannot have UHC without commodities. We cannot have universal health coverage without leadership,” the NAFDAC Director-General said.
Adeyeye said NAFDAC had strengthened its internal systems, staff capacity and regulatory processes to ensure Nigerians had access to quality, safe and effective medicines and nutritious foods.
She added that the agency had moved from maturity level one to maturity level three following global benchmarking of its regulatory systems and performance over recent years.
According to her, NAFDAC also became the 24th member of the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use, strengthening its global regulatory standing.
She added that the agency’s achievements were driven by the need to build sustainable systems rather than merely pursue compliance with international regulatory standards and benchmarks.
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Representative in Nigeria, Ms Muriel Mafico, described Nigeria’s health reforms as among the boldest and most courageous witnessed by the organisation.
“The reforms we are seeing in Nigeria are the boldest, most courageous health reforms we have seen at least in our time,” Mafico said.
She said the reforms extended beyond Nigeria, describing them as an agenda for Africa and the world because progress in Nigeria translated into broader global health progress.
“It takes courage, it takes leadership to accept that the changes we want to see cannot be done by the ministry of health alone,” she said.
She said partnerships among government, civil society, development partners and United Nations agencies were critical to addressing persistent challenges facing Nigeria’s health sector and reform agenda.
Mafico said United Nations agencies would continue supporting Nigeria’s health reform agenda, emphasising that all stakeholders had important responsibilities in achieving sustainable improvements in healthcare delivery.
“We are not here as spectators. We all have a role to play,” she said.(NAN)
Edited by Abiemwense Moru