CISLAC wants National Health Act implemented
The Executive Director of Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) Auwal Ibrahim Musa has called for the implementation of the National Health Act (NHA) so as to reverse the woes of the health sector in Nigeria. Musa made the call in his opening remarks at a one-day Legislative and Executive dialogue on action for effective […]
The Executive Director of Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) Auwal Ibrahim Musa has called for the implementation of the National Health Act (NHA) so as to reverse the woes of the health sector in Nigeria.
Musa made the call in his opening remarks at a one-day Legislative and Executive dialogue on action for effective implementation of policies which held in Kaduna. According to him, the National Health Act if implemented will resuscitate Nigeria’s dwindling health sector.
While he identified poor funding and poor budgetary allocation as major problems of the health sector in Nigeria, he reiterated that the NHA will resuscitate the dwindling health care resources, facilities and services at all levels.
Nigeria health care system he said is one of the worst hit by inadequate budgetary allocation, delayed fund release, lack of judicious utilization of the existing funds and poor oversight activities among others.
"The implementation of the National Health Act 2014 which is a comprehensive legal document containing several pro-poor provisions for primary health care was supposed to have commenced since 2015 but it is yet to see the light of the day even in the 2016 appropriation act. Even though financing health care system remain a major challenge across the world, Nigeria is yet to demonstrate the ability to face this challenge so that the health system can benefit citizens at all levels because accessible and affordable health care system is paramount to the survival of the citizens," he said.
Speaking further, he stressed that health remains a major challenge in the development of Nigerian’s economy; noting that a study conducted by CISLAC in 2013 revealed that one in 13 women dies during pregnancy or child birth in Nigeria while 12percent of children die before reaching the age of five. The study he said observed that in every 10 minutes, one woman dies from conditions associated with childbirth. "All these factors are largely attributed to poor budgetary allocation to health sector," he stressed.
On her part, CISLAC’s Senior Program Officer on MDGs, Gender and Reproductive Health, Chioma Blessing Kanu stated that the implementation of the National Health Act would help address incessant strike actions in the health sector.