HFN to Unveil Nigeria Private Health Sector Outlook at Annual Conference

The Healthcare Federation of Nigeria (HFN) has announced plans to unveil the Nigeria Private Health Sector Outlook 2026, a flagship, evidence-based publication designed to provide a clear and forward-looking assessment of Nigeria’s private health sector.

The publication combines macroeconomic analysis, market sizing, policy and regulatory review, and healthcare financing insights to inform decision-making across government, investment, and industry.

HFN disclosed this at a press conference on Thursday ahead of its Annual Conference 2026, scheduled to hold on 4–5 March 2026 at The Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Jointly developed by HFN, the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), the Presidential Initiative on Unlocking Healthcare Value Chains (PVAC), and other partners, the Outlook is aligned with Nigeria’s ongoing health financing reforms, private sector participation agenda, and healthcare value-chain development. According to HFN, this alignment ensures the publication speaks directly to national priorities rather than abstract market analysis.

Speaking at the press conference, HFN President, Mrs. Njide Ndili, said that while Nigeria has significant private sector capacity across healthcare delivery, manufacturing, and innovation, weak financing structures and limited integration into policy frameworks continue to constrain system-wide impact.

According to her, private sector providers already deliver a substantial share of healthcare services in Nigeria, yet remain insufficiently integrated into national and sub-national health planning, financing, and reform processes.

“Universal Health Coverage will not be achieved by public funding alone,” Ndili said. “It requires deliberate alignment between public institutions and private sector capacity, not parallel systems operating in isolation.”

She explained that the Outlook was developed to help close this gap by providing policymakers, investors, and operators with a shared evidence base to guide reforms, investment decisions, and system integration. She noted that it would be unveiled at the HFN Annual Conference.

The Conference, themed “Transforming Healthcare: Leveraging Private Sector Innovation to Achieve Quality Outcomes and Universal Health Coverage,” will convene policymakers, private sector leaders, investors, development partners, and regulators to examine how financing, innovation, and partnerships can be mobilised to deliver measurable improvements in healthcare delivery. The Conference will also host the official launch of the Outlook, positioning it as a central reference for discussions and engagements.

In her remarks, HFN Public Relations Secretary, Mrs. Chinyere Okorocha, said the Conference would provide an important platform for aligning perspectives across the healthcare ecosystem, particularly at a time when Nigeria faces increasing healthcare delivery pressures.

“This year’s Conference is coming at a critical moment for the health sector,” she said. “By bringing policymakers, private sector operators, investors, regulators and development partners together in one forum, we are creating space for informed dialogue on how to strengthen healthcare delivery, improve access, and support sustainable reforms.”

Also speaking, the Chair of the HFN Annual Conference Planning Committee and CEO of Infinity Health Africa, Irene Nwaukwa, emphasised the role of technology in strengthening public–private partnerships and improving the quality and consistency of healthcare delivery across Nigeria.

According to her, technology provides the fastest pathway for addressing systemic gaps in healthcare regulation, enrolment, and service delivery. “The fastest way to leapfrog our healthcare challenges is through technology — technology in regulation, enrolment, and actual care delivery,” Nwaukwa said.

She noted that digitising primary healthcare centres would improve accountability, reduce medical errors, and strengthen emergency response, adding that pilot initiatives were already underway to digitise facilities under the Nigerian Children’s Health Initiative. “Diagnostics should be accessible locally. We shouldn’t be waiting months for test results to be sent abroad, and technology makes that possible,” she said, pointing to lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic on the risks of weak primary and secondary healthcare systems.

HFN is the umbrella body representing Nigeria’s organized private healthcare sector, committed to strengthening the health system through strategic advocacy, collaboration, and private sector leadership.