By Sarah NEGEDU
Nigeria’s push to improve electricity supply in primary healthcare received a major boost on Thursday, when international partners formally handed over 371 solar power systems for installation in Primary Health Centres, PHCs, across 16 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The national handover, held at the Apo PHC in Abuja, marks one of the biggest coordinated attempts in recent years to tackle the chronic power gaps crippling service delivery in frontline health facilities.
The project, supported by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in partnership with UNICEF, the World Bank and the World Health Organization, aims to improve vaccine storage, maternal care, diagnostics and general healthcare services for millions of residents, especially in underserved communities.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Development, Prof. Ali Pate, said the intervention addresses “a fundamental operational barrier” that has long weakened PHCs nationwide.
The minister also praised health workers for sustaining services despite years of unreliable power and inadequate infrastructure.
Director-General of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Muyi Aina, confirmed that full project documentation has been transferred to the Federal Government through the Ministry of Health.
According to him, the handover reflects “what coordinated, collective support can achieve in strengthening PHC systems.”
Earlier, in her remarks, the Mandate Secretary of the FCT Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Dr. Adedolapo Fasawe, said the selection of the FCT as host for the symbolic national handover underscores the territory’s role in Nigeria’s primary healthcare reforms.
She noted that many of the beneficiary facilities are located in 100 Zero-Dose Local Government Areas and other underserved LGAs where immunisation coverage remains low.
Fasawe added that stable electricity will improve vaccine storage capacity, maternal and newborn services and emergency response, while assuring that the FCT Administration will ensure proper maintenance of the systems.
Meanwhile, UNICEF’s Country Representative, Wafaa Saeed Abdelateef, alongside other partners, said the installations would help strengthen PHC operations and expand access to essential health services for communities that depend heavily on local clinics.
