Health
FG expands cancer funding, local drug production
The federal government has said it is expanding funding, local drug production and research to improve cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment while easing patients’ financial burden.
The Director-General of the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT), Usman Aliyu, said this on Saturday in Abuja at the Best of American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Africa 2026 conference.
The conference, organised in collaboration with the African Organisation for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC), has the theme: “From Global Discovery to Local Delivery: Driving Africa to the Cutting Edge of Cancer Care.”
Mr Aliyu said the government had introduced measures to make cancer care more affordable, although treatment remained beyond the reach of many Nigerians.
He said the Catastrophic Health Fund under the National Health Insurance Authority subsidised cancer prevention, diagnosis, chemotherapy and radiotherapy for eligible patients.
He added that NICRAT operated the National Cancer Health Fund to support indigent cancer patients unable to afford treatment.
“These are initiatives by the government to support Nigerians suffering from this dreadful disease,” he said.
Mr Aliyu said the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain would promote local production of cancer medicines and improve access to affordable treatment.
He said experts at the conference would review landmark studies presented at the ASCO Annual Meeting and adapt proven innovations to African health systems.
“We are trying to domesticate expensive treatments by producing much-needed medicines locally and translating global research into action in our clinics,” he said.
Financial protection
Lolade Adewale, Special Adviser on Research and Innovation to the Minister of State for Health, said government was expanding financial protection for cancer patients through targeted insurance schemes.
Ms Adewale said the Cancer Health Fund and the Social Determinants of Health Fund would improve access to treatment for eligible patients.
“Within the next year, you will hear more about it,” she said, referring to efforts to strengthen cancer insurance coverage.
She said Nigeria had commenced three immunotherapy clinical studies for the first time, giving patients access to advanced medicines previously unavailable in the country.
According to her, medicines such as Nivolumab and Keytruda are now available through clinical trials at no cost to participating Nigerians, reducing the need to seek treatment abroad.
Also speaking, Immediate Past President of AORTIC, Miriam Mutebi, said Africa accounted for only about eight per cent of global cancer research.
She said the continent’s research output remained inadequate, especially for cervical and prostate cancers, in spite of their high disease burden.
READ ALSO: Private sector indispensable to strengthening cancer care in Nigeria – NICRAT DG
Ms Mutebi urged African governments to fulfil their commitment to dedicate one per cent of Gross Domestic Product to research and development.
She said stronger domestic investment would generate evidence to improve diagnosis, treatment completion, patient experience and health systems.
The Chief Medical Officer of ASCO, Julie Gralow, said many breakthrough cancer therapies had not been adequately tested among African populations.
Ms Gralow said the conference would help determine how global evidence could be adapted to African settings while addressing affordability and access.
She said the ASCO-AORTIC partnership focused on workforce development, clinical research and training the next generation of African cancer researchers.
According to her, the organisations will open the second round of the Sub-Saharan Africa Clinical Research Scholars Programme in October.
AORTIC Vice-President for North America, Abiola Ibraheem, said the initiative was designed to bridge the gap between cancer care available in high-income countries and Africa.
She urged African countries to work collectively to improve access to innovative cancer therapies through a continental approach.
Ms Ibraheem said participation had grown significantly since the inaugural conference in Ethiopia, attracting more countries, sponsors and stakeholders committed to advancing cancer care across Africa.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the conference brought together oncologists, researchers, policymakers and development partners from across Africa and beyond.
Participants reviewed major scientific advances presented at the ASCO Annual Meeting and explored how they could be applied within African health systems.
(NAN)
The federal government says it has disbursed N249.6 billion to the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) in the past three years, representing 77.1 per cent of the N323.6 billion disbursed since the fund was established in 2019.
The government also plans to expand direct financing to at least 17,600 primary healthcare facilities and provide health insurance coverage for about 90,000 Nigerians in correctional facilities.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Salako, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja during a ministerial briefing on three years of implementation of the fund under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Established under the National Health Act 2014, the BHCPF is designed to improve access to essential healthcare, particularly for poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
Mr Salako said the fund had become a key instrument for implementing the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative, launched in December 2023 to strengthen healthcare delivery and financing.
Disbursements and allocations
According to Mr Salako, total releases to the fund stood at N422.3 billion as of September 2026, with N323.6 billion disbursed.
He said the Ministerial Oversight Committee approved an additional N40.76 billion at its meeting on 14 October. The approval is expected to raise cumulative disbursements to N364.3 billion, including N290.2 billion under the Tinubu administration, according to the statement.
Speaking on the latest allocation, Mr Salako said N19.87 billion would go to the National Health Insurance Authority, N18.34 billion to the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, N2.04 billion to emergency medical treatment and N509.48 million to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
He said the allocations would support health insurance, primary healthcare services, emergency medical response and disease surveillance.
Mr Salako added that the government was working with the National Assembly to increase the fund’s statutory allocation from one per cent to two per cent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
Health insurance and primary healthcare
On financial protection, Mr Salako said national health insurance enrolment increased from about 16.2 million people in 2023 to 23.06 million by the third quarter of 2026.
He said the BHCPF had supported insurance coverage for 3,182,943 vulnerable Nigerians with National Identification Numbers.
The fund, he added, had also supported free surgeries and rehabilitation for women with vesicovaginal fistula, emergency caesarean sections and other emergency obstetric and newborn care interventions for 96,068 women and babies.
Mr Salako said the oversight committee had also approved health insurance coverage for approximately 90,000 Nigerians in correctional facilities, with implementation expected to expand access to essential healthcare for inmates.
On primary healthcare delivery, he said direct facility financing currently supports 8,309 PHCs across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
He said the government planned to include a further 5,212 facilities, bringing the projected total to 13,521. However, the government’s broader target is to expand direct financing to at least 17,600 facilities.
Mr Salako added that the number of facilities attaining Level 2 readiness increased from 1,748 in 2024 to 3,202 in the third quarter of 2026.
He also said PHC attendance rose from 34.55 million in 2023 to 43.06 million by the second quarter of 2026.
Emergency services and health workers
On emergency medical services, Mr Salako said operational structures had been established in all 36 states and the FCT.
Through the Rural Emergency Service and Maternal Transport arrangements, emergency transport services had been established in 171 of the 172 local government areas covered by the Maternal and Newborn Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative. The government plans to extend the initiative to 200 local government areas by December 2026.
He said the emergency response system had recorded 168,571 ambulance service episodes since 2023, covering obstetric emergencies, neonatal and under-five emergencies, road traffic injuries, snakebites, burns and other urgent medical conditions.
Mr Salako said 78,054 frontline health workers had been trained towards a national target of 120,000.
He also said the oversight committee approved phased salary support for 13,800 community-based health workers and skilled birth attendants. Under the arrangement, the federal government would cover eligible salary costs in full in the first year, 67 per cent in the second year and 33 per cent in the third year, before state governments assume full responsibility.
READ ALSO: FG partners US foundation to mobilise $1bn to tackle child malnutrition
He said the committee had also approved the operationalisation of MEDIPOOL, a pooled procurement mechanism intended to improve access to essential medicines and health commodities, subject to quality assurance and accountability safeguards.
Accountability and next steps
Mr Salako urged state governments to fulfil their counterpart financing obligations and ensure sustainable funding for primary healthcare services. He commended Katsina State for releasing N240.79 million to its State Health Insurance Agency to support expanded coverage.
He said the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare was strengthening financial accountability through the implementation of the updated BHCPF Guidelines 2.0 and collaboration with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to track the use of public funds.
He emphasised that timely reporting, transparent payments, and expenditure verification were necessary to ensure funds reached healthcare facilities and translated into services for patients.
Mr Salako said the government remained committed to increasing domestic health financing and improving access to essential healthcare, particularly for vulnerable Nigerians.
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The proportion of children who received the third dose of the pentavalent vaccine (Penta 3) in Kwara has increased from 34.9 per cent in 2024 to 50.4 per cent in 2025–2026.
Nusirat Elelu, the executive secretary of the Kwara State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, disclosed this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday.
Ms Elelu explained that the development is contained in a recent survey report released by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.
She described the latest survey findings as encouraging indicators of progress in child health across the state.
She added that the proportion of children aged 12 to 23 months who had received no vaccines declined from 48.1 per cent to 27.3 per cent within the period under review.
According to her, this reflects substantial progress in reaching more children with life-saving immunisation services.
The executive secretary explained that the pentavalent vaccine administered to children aged six, 10 and 14 weeks will protect them against five serious diseases, including diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough.
“This improvement in our pentavalent vaccine coverage underscores the Kwara government’s effort at improving child health.
“It further reaffirms the importance of routine immunisation in protecting children and promoting healthy development,” she said.
Ms Elelu quoted the survey as saying stunting declined from 40.8 per cent to 35.5 per cent; wasting reduced from 6.1 per cent to 3.5 per cent, while underweight prevalence dropped from 24.5 per cent to 14.8 per cent.
She noted that these improvements represented encouraging development in efforts to promote child survival, healthy growth and overall wellbeing in Kwara.
READ ALSO: Nigeria Health Watch to host conference on scaling health innovations
“This is one of the greatest improvements in our nutrition indices recorded in Kwara in recent years,” she said.
She attributed the success to the state government’s investment in primary healthcare, particularly through support for nutrition-sensitive interventions and the biannual Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health Week.
She reiterated the agency’s commitment to strengthening primary healthcare delivery through routine and outreach immunisation, community mobilisation, nutrition services and growth monitoring.
She enjoined parents and caregivers to sustain the gains by taking their children to the nearest primary healthcare centre for free routine immunisation.
Ms Elelu advised them to keep their immunisation cards up to date, participate in community outreach programmes, and ensure regular monitoring of their children’s growth.
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