The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, on Friday said that the Federal Government is intensifying investments in health infrastructure, human resources, vaccines, and essential commodities to strengthen Nigeria’s healthcare system and improve health outcomes.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja at the conclusion of the three-day 2025 Joint Annual Review of the Health Sector, themed ‘All Hands, One Mission: Bringing Nigeria’s Health Sector to Light’, Prof. Pate emphasised that these investments are central to sustaining the early gains achieved under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Nigeria has long struggled with healthcare challenges, including high maternal and infant mortality rates, inadequate primary healthcare coverage, and shortages of essential medicines and vaccines.
The government’s Renewed Hope Agenda, introduced by President Bola Tinubu, seeks to address these issues through targeted investments in healthcare infrastructure, workforce expansion, and partnerships with development agencies.
Pate noted, ‘I think we need to continue to push forward by investing in infrastructure and human resources so that our citizens can access better quality healthcare and improve overall health outcomes.
‘But there are challenges ahead. The resourcing of health will need to be optimised and increased, with sufficient funds allocated for vaccines, commodities, and other essential needs’.
Pate affirmed that Nigeria is beginning to witness encouraging improvements in key health indicators.
He highlighted that development partners are increasingly aligning with the country’s national health priorities.
‘In health, we’re seeing progress. Mortality rates are beginning to decline, including newborn mortality. Primary healthcare is expanding. States are actively participating, the private sector is getting involved, and civil society’.
‘Our development partners are aligning behind the priorities set by the President. The joint review has therefore been successful’, he said.
The minister also emphasised that citizens play a critical role in sustaining these improvements.
‘Our population can enhance their own health and wellbeing by adopting necessary health-promoting behaviours’, he added.
Describing the second Joint Annual Review of the Sector-Wide Approach as successful, Pate highlighted that it reflected a united national front.
‘We also appreciate all participants, including the strong leadership from the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, and other Federal Government officials present.
‘Our traditional leaders—the Sultan of Sokoto, His Royal Majesty the Ooni of Ife; the Christian Association of Nigeria, as well as the private sector and civil society, have all solemnly backed this agenda. This demonstrates a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach to improving the health of Nigerians’, he said.
Reassuring Nigerians about the ongoing health reforms, Pate affirmed that the government is committed to sustaining momentum in the coming years.
‘The citizens of Nigeria are recognizing the leadership of President Tinubu in this direction and are gaining confidence.
‘We will not let them down, and we will continue to work hard into 2026 and beyond to take this country to the higher level envisioned by our President’, he concluded.
