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The House of Representatives has commenced the probe of the utilisation of $4.6 billion health grant given to the country by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) between 2021 and 2025 for the fight against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis (TB) and Malaria.
At the inauguration of the probe committee, the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Infectious Diseases, Hon Amobi Ogah, explained that the probe would determine how the health grants were utilised.
He also said that 90 per cent of the country’s intervention funds for these diseases came from international partners. ‘We must assert our capacity to take charge of our affairs, particularly in the response against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria,’ Ogah stated. He also warned that ‘the era of spending Nigeria’s money without approval and accountability is over.’
It is sad that our healthcare delivery system has deteriorated over the years on account of poor funding, dilapidated infrastructure, high disease burden and brain drain. Despite the injection of the $4.6 billion global funding to fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria, Nigeria is still grappling with rising burden of these and other diseases.
Besides, there are also delays in implementation of programmes, weak actionable frameworks, and the visible impact of programmes to combat serious health challenges such as HIV, malaria, polio, and tuberculosis in the country. The donor grant from the US agency would complement the federal government’s efforts to tackle the targeted diseases and improve the nation’s healthcare services. Unfortunately, it has seemingly failed to address the targeted health challenges.
We laud the House of Representatives for commencing the probe of the donor funds. We urge the probe committee to be thorough and diligent in the exercise. The outcome of the probe should be made public and those found guilty should be prosecuted. It is worth pointing out that since the USAID gave the health grants to Nigeria, the country has experienced worsening HIV/AIDS crisis. For instance, in 2023 alone, about 15,000 children (aged 0–14 years) died from AIDS-related causes in Nigeria, while 51,000 AIDS-related deaths were recorded nationwide, placing Nigeria third globally in HIV deaths and with the highest number of HIV cases in West and Central Africa regions. For tuberculosis, Nigeria ranks first in Africa and sixth in the world, accounting for 4.6 per cent of the global TB burden, while the country bears the highest malaria burden worldwide, representing 26.6 per cent of global cases and 31 per cent of global malaria deaths. These statistics raise major concerns about the transparency, coordination, and impact of the grants, especially given that the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare is responsible for implementing USAID-funded projects, while the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) Nigeria oversees Global Fund programmes.
Henceforth, the lawmakers must enhance their oversight surveillance over the utilization of health grants and even national health budgets as guaranteed by our extant laws. The probe is important because it will help the government to know how the grants were utilised, especially as the Global Fund prepares its 8th Replenishment phase. With our fragile health system, the country risks not meeting the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target of eliminating HIV, TB, and malaria by 2030. The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Ali Pate, said the probe would lead to transparency, accountability and eventual ownership of health programmes.
We abhor lack of transparency and accountability in the administration of donor funds. It is regrettable that the huge grant was given to Nigeria for the improvement of its health sector, yet the same sector is suffering from neglect and decay. The probe committee should thoroughly investigate how the health grant was disbursed. Also, the National Assembly should take its constitutional oversight responsibilities seriously, especially in the utilization of global health funds.
Beyond the probe of global health grants, we urge the federal government to considerably increase the nation’s health funding to 26 per cent. The state and local governments should also significantly enhance their health budgets. As the giant of Africa, and one of the major oil-producing countries, Nigeria must adequately fund the health sector and reduce its disease burden. In fact, the era of depending on foreign donors to fund most of our health priorities must be over soon.
