By Chioma Obinna

Physicians in Lagos have warned that Nigeria’s health sector is on the brink of collapse unless the Federal Government urgently increases budgetary allocation to at least 15 percent, tackles corruption, and improves the welfare of doctors as well as other health workers.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2025 Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Lagos State Branch, Prof. Edamisan Temiye, a renowned Consultant paediatrician, said the sector has been crippled by years of neglect and poor funding.

Delivering a keynote address, he said:

“From 2015 to 2025, we have not moved beyond four to five percent of budget allocation to health. Our hospitals are not properly equipped, we have severe manpower shortages, and the health insurance system is dysfunctional. Nothing happens at the grassroots, and our people are dying,” he said.

Temiye noted that Nigeria has one of the lowest life expectancies in Africa, with women dying from childbirth and thousands of children not surviving beyond age five.

He stressed that prudent utilisation of funds and reduction of out-of-pocket payments through universal health coverage must become priorities.

He also called for Nigerian doctors to be actively involved in policy and decision-making, saying the Nigerian Medical Association must ensure its best professionals occupy leadership positions at all levels.

On doctors’ welfare, Temiye warned that poor remuneration is fueling brain drain. “There was a time Nigerian doctors earned more than their counterparts in the UK and returned home after training. Today, even Ghana offers better pay. Unless salaries and working conditions improve, doctors will continue to leave, and the system will collapse,” he said.

The expert stressed that Nigeria must urgently address corruption in the health system, strengthen institutions, and reinvest in training and equipment.

“It is an indictment on government when presidents travel abroad for treatment while ordinary Nigerians die from preventable illnesses. If the system is fixed, everyone including leaders will benefit. Health must become the priority for Nigeria to survive,” Temiye added.

In his welcome address, Chairman of NMA Lagos State Zone, Dr. Saheed Babajide, reaffirmed that the welfare of doctors remains central to the association’s mandate.

“When I offered myself for service and was entrusted with the leadership of this noble Association, I made a solemn promise that the welfare of our members would be at the very center of my administration. That promise has guided every action we have taken since the beginning of this tenure,” he said.

Babajide who commended the unity and solidarity among doctors in Lagos, assured members that the association would continue to defend their rights and dignity.

“Our unity is the foundation upon which our achievements have been built. Without it, our advocacy would have been weaker, our voice would have been divided, and our progress would have been slower,” he added.

Speaking, the first Vice President of the NMA, Dr. Benjamin Olowojebutu, also lamented the worsening doctor-patient ratio.

“One doctor now caters for about 10,000 patients instead of the WHO-recommended 600. Doctors are overworked, underpaid, and dying daily. Healthcare must be treated as social capital that drives GDP growth,” he said.

Similarly, the Co – Pioneer of In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) in Sub – Saharan Africa, Prof. Oladapo Ashiru, warned that low funding was endangering national development.

“A nation that is healthy is productive. If you want doctors to stay, pay them well, make them feel valued, and provide an environment where they and their families can thrive. That was what our forefathers prioritised, and that is why the West surged ahead in the 50s and 60s,” Ashiru said.