By Gabriel Ewepu

ABUJA – AMID daunting healthcare challenges across the country, the Federal Government, PharmAccess, Healthcare Federation of Nigeria, HFN, and other stakeholders have advocated for modern policies to boost healthcare delivery services.

The call was made at a conference basically on the implemention of the ‘Sector-Wide Approach, SWAp,’ in healthcare delivery, which was facilitated by PharmAccess.

Those at the conference also included the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Muhammad Pate; Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Tunji Alausa; Chairman of the House Committee on Health Institutions, Hon. Amos Magaji; the Director of Digital Transformations for Health (DTH) Lab, Prof Ilona Kickbusch; and the President of the UNITE Parliamentarians Network for Global Health and CEO of HealthAI, Dr. Ricardo Baptista Leite.

Others were the Director of Health Systems at PharmAccess Amsterdam, Kwasi Boahene; the Country Director of PharmAccess Nigeria, Njide Ndili; representatives from the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON); and several commissioners, legislators, and prominent leaders from the private sector.

Meanwhile, the lead in the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Pate, emphatically stressed how cardinal and pivotal t Public Private Partnerships, PPP, strategically occupies in frontally addressing the precarious healthcare challenges the nation has been grappling with over the years.

He lamented the long-standing problems that have plagued and stunted growth and development of the health sector including inadequate infrastructure, limited access to essential services, and the shortage of healthcare professionals.

PharmAccess as one of the sponsors of the dialogue assured that it is dedicated to driving healthcare innovation and strengthening public-private partnerships to enhance healthcare delivery in Nigeria, and remains committed to improving access to quality health services, and would actively support initiatives aligned with the vision of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

He said: “Public Private Partnerships are essential to realizing the health sector we aspire to.”

Meanwhile, the Minister appealed to the private sector to join forces with the government in order to scale up innovations, lower costs, and improve healthcare delivery, basically to the Universal Health Coverage, UHC, across the country.

In a remark, according to the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Tunji Alausa, the government’s multi-pillar strategy to reform the healthcare sector, highlighting the necessity of utilizing accurate health data to inform policy decisions.

“We must leverage technology and data analytics to improve health outcomes across the nation,” he asserted, advocating for a unified approach to healthcare governance.

In a presentation, Dr Ricardo Baptista Leite pointed out that the future of healthcare with a focus on better outcomes, quality of life, and well-being for all, which Leite said there is the need for a shift in the approach to healthcare, while emphasizing on the importance of embracing Artificial Intelligence along with effective policies, and impactful investments, and called for a more proactive, and preventive approach.

Earlier, in an address of welcome, the President of Healthcare Federation of Nigeria, HFN, Dr Pamela Ajayi, emphasized the need for a policy dialogue of this nature to address pressing healthcare challenges.

“This dialogue provides an essential platform for the private sector to engage with policymakers”, Ajayi said.

She also added that the significance of the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) in ensuring that development efforts align with national priorities.