Niger spends N4b on health care services, says Commissioner
John Adams, Minna
The Niger State Government said it has spent well over N4 billion in the provision of health care services to the people of the state in the last three years.
In addition this, no fewer than 1,000 health workers were recruited to address the manpower shortage at the health sector in the state while a number of others were retrained.
Niger State Commissioner of Health and Hospital Services, Dr. Mustapha Mohammed Jibrin, disclosed this, in Minna, at the weekend, when he hosted the state Media Strategy and Communication Committee in his office.
Jibrin pointed out that the current administration had in the last three years made the health sector one of its top priority to ensure that citizens have access to quality health service at their door steps.
The commissioner told the Committee that over 1,500 health facilities that were inherited from the previous administration under a sorry state were being renovated and remodeling to meet global standard.
Jibrin also explained that the present government in the state has embarked on training and retraining of health workers within Nigeria and outside the country, all in an efforts to ensure capacity building and productivity.
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He said Niger State is among the few states in the country that have implemented the consolidated health salary structure as both doctors, nurses and other health workers in the state now earned same salaries with that of federal due to the 100 per cent implementation of the salary structure.
According to him, the present administration had also spent millions of naira as medical assistance to those seeking medical attention outside the country.
He stated that the full accreditation of the School of Nursing Bida after 40 years of it establishment and the establishment of College of Health Sciences, Kontagora soon to take off are among the land mark achievements of the administration in the health sector.
