The Tinubu Health Sector Practitioners Alliance, TIHSEPA, have cited the ongoing health-sector reforms of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, as basis for his re-election.
The alliance, which is mobilising health practitioners across the country to support Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027, said the reforms would strengthen Nigeria’s healthcare system.
National Coordinator of TIHSEPA, Dr. Ogechi Lokpobiri, made the call while highlighting the administration’s interventions in nursing education, medical training, healthcare infrastructure, workforce development and health financing.
Lokpobiri also commended the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, and the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Olatunji Alausa, for their roles in advancing reforms aimed at improving healthcare delivery and professional development.
Citing figures from the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, she said annual enrolment quotas for nursing and midwifery training institutions increased from 28,000 in May 2023 to 115,000 for the 2025 academic year.
She also cited the retraining of more than 69,000 frontline health workers nationwide and the approval of recruitment waivers for 20,000 additional health personnel, with nurses and midwives expected to account for 60 per cent of the positions.
According to her, the expansion of training and recruitment would help address staffing shortages across hospitals and primary healthcare facilities.
She, however, stressed the need for improved welfare, adequate staffing, modern equipment and better working conditions to retain skilled professionals and ensure that investments in training translated into improved patient care.
On medical education, Lokpobiri cited a reported N110 billion investment in 18 medical schools under the Federal Ministry of Education’s Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative.
The programme also reportedly includes the rehabilitation of 12 engineering and technology faculties and the development of 20 institutions specialising in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medical sciences.
She said the investments could strengthen professional training and research capacity, but called for effective monitoring to ensure that beneficiary institutions had functional laboratories, modern equipment, qualified personnel and adequate clinical training facilities.
Lokpobiri also highlighted healthcare infrastructure projects announced by the Presidency in May 2026, including a laboratory complex at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital in Akwa Ibom State, a mental health and drug rehabilitation centre at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, and an immunisation supply chain hub at the Federal Medical Stores in Oshodi, Lagos State.
Other interventions she cited included primary healthcare facilities in Kano and Delta states, as well as emergency medical transportation comprising 145 tricycle ambulances, six boat ambulances and 79 ambulances for federal tertiary hospitals.
She said the plan also provided for the deployment of compressed natural gas-powered ambulances across all 73 federal tertiary health facilities.
According to her, the interventions could improve access to emergency treatment, particularly in rural and underserved communities where distance and inadequate transportation often delay access to healthcare.
On health financing, Lokpobiri cited government figures indicating that health insurance enrolment had exceeded 22 million Nigerians by July 2026, representing an increase of approximately 35 per cent since 2023.
She said expanding insurance coverage could reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses and protect households, particularly low-income families, from the financial burden of illness.
She also advocated increased investment in domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing, saying local production of medicines, diagnostic products and medical equipment could reduce import dependence and strengthen the supply of essential medical products.
On maternal and newborn health, Lokpobiri cited a 2025 review by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, which reportedly recorded a 17 per cent reduction in maternal deaths and a 12 per cent decline in newborn deaths across 172 high-burden local government areas targeted by specific interventions.
She said sustaining the reported progress would require continued investment in antenatal care, skilled birth attendance, emergency obstetric services and newborn care, alongside stronger collaboration among the federal, state and local governments.
Lokpobiri, who is the wife of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, said sustained investment in the health sector would be necessary to consolidate the reforms and address longstanding challenges in healthcare delivery.
Making a case for Tinubu’s re-election, she said the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda recognised that healthcare was fundamental to national productivity, prosperity and development.
“President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda recognises that the health of Nigerians is fundamental to the country’s productivity, prosperity and future. Investments in healthcare infrastructure, professional training, maternal health and insurance coverage provide a foundation for building a stronger health system,” she said.
She maintained that healthcare development required sustained funding, effective implementation of policies and stronger partnerships among government institutions and professional associations.
Lokpobiri added that the ultimate measure of the reforms should be their impact on Nigerians, including improved access to treatment, better patient outcomes, stronger health facilities and reduced financial hardship for households seeking medical care.
