Yahaya: Nigerians Need More Awareness on Utilisation of Basic Health Care Funds

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

Bauchi State Stakeholders have urged the Coordinating Minister of Health Professor Mohammed Ali Pate to ensure improved governance of health financing by educating poor, vulnerable and other citizens more on their rights to know about utilisation of billions of Naira basic health care funds allocated to over 8000 health facilities.

Spokesman of the group Dr. Yahaya Ibrahim, Director of Andiwa Farmers Association said this in Azare headquarters of Katagum Local Government Area of the State yesterday.

He said rural people, peasant farmers and vulnerable communities need to be educated more on how they will access healthcare facilities and to know that so and so amount of money is being kept for them at the so and so healthcare facilities, since majority of them are illiterates, they don’t even know the facilities where the ministry allocated their money”.

According to him, “I saw a letter circulating on social media by a reputable organization, BudgIt, under the Freedom of Information Act, asking the Minister of Health to give them information on the utilisation of these funds.

 “But several weeks after the ministry received the letter we didn’t hear anything from the ministry which is against the rule of law, because it is the law that established the ministry and it’s the law that appointed the minister and it’s the law that asked him to explain not only to BudgIt but to Nigerians about the utilisation of these funds. But keeping silent will not help matters.”

Dr. Yahaya said everyone knows BudgIT Foundation is a civic tech organisation raising the standards of transparency, accountability, and service delivery in the Nigerian government and governance.

It uses creative technology to simplify public information, stimulate a community of active citizens, and enable their right to demand accountability, institutional reforms, efficient service delivery, and an equitable society.

 “Tracka, a program under BudgIT, has been supporting communities to track government/constituency projects in the community for the sole purpose of ensuring that these projects are delivered for the development of the community and the improvement of the lives of the citizens.

 “They wrote pursuant to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011, to formally request access to information regarding the recent third-round funding disbursement through the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.

Specifically, the request includes the following information – the complete list of the 8,000+ health facilities that are meant to benefit from the recent third round funding amounting to N32.9 billion. The precise location (including state and local government area) of each of these benefiting facilities”.

He added that, “The amount allocated and disbursed to each of the 8,000 facilities. As an independent monitoring body, Tracka has been actively involved in tracking and monitoring some of the revitalised Primary Health Care Centres (PHCs) across Nigeria.

 “We are committed to driving transparency and accountability in this important project, ensuring that funds are effectively utilized for the intended purpose of improving primary healthcare delivery.

 “We believe that access to this information will enable BudgIT to continue with their oversight role and contribute positively to the success of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund initiative”.

In the spirit of transparency and accountability, as stipulated in the Freedom of Information Act, 2011, but ministry is still silent”, he stated.

He said “It is a welcome development that reputable transparency and accountability organisations like BudgIT are asking to know how funds allocated to the healthcare of the common man are utilised by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, under Prof. Mohammed Ali Pate.

 “Apart from the N32.9billion naira third round of the basic healthcare funds approved to the Ministry by President Bola Tinubu, for the benefit of the common man, there are other private donations by local and international donor agencies and development partners.

 “The utilisation of such donations are usually shrouded in mystery. I want to call on BudgIT to write to the ministry again to also ask questions about the utilisation of all donations made by local and international agencies such as Dangote Foundation, TY Danjuma Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Carter Foundation and many others.

 “BudgIT should also demand to know from these agencies how much they donated to Nigeria, and how the funds are utilised”.

Dr. Yahaya said: “I recently read that the Minister has set up what he calls “Oversight Committee/Basic Health Care Provision Fund Secretariat,” that will work together with the ICPC to track the proper utilisation of these funds.

 “While this may sound noble, the minister’s attention must be drawn to the fact that these funds were entrusted into his hands. As such, he should allow a neutral, Non-Governmental organisation like BudgIT to do the tracking on behalf of ordinary Nigerians for whose healthcare the funds were meant.

Additionally, the minister should know that his choice of his home state of Bauchi to launch the tracking exercise has left people asking questions about the real motive of the whole exercise.”

Dr. Yahaya said, “it will be good if the minister will do his best make sure that our hospitals are well equipped with needed radiologist equipment and other test equipment to enable a patient undergo series of tests in the hospital.”

He said our people are afraid to complain on the conduct of some personnel in the hospital, so the minister shall solicit the support of secret security services that will monitor how things are going today in government hospital.

Even Polio immunisation he shall do something to sanitise the system especially the conduct of some personnel.

He advised Nigerians to remove fear, to put more interest on their rights and complain whenever they see things are not going in the right ways as expected

Dr. Oreshoremi Ogbe, the Ministerial Oversight Committee (MOC) Secretary, stated this at the onboarding of State Oversight Committees (SOCs) from the North-West zone held in Zaria, Kaduna State.

He expressed concern that the 2023 BHCPF Audit Report showed persistent accountability issues, stressing the need for stricter oversight to ensure funds released reach the citizens in dire need.

Dr. Ogbe assured that the Federal Government would follow due process to ensure that monies earmarked for the implementation of BHCPF benefit the most vulnerable layer of the society.

According to him, Guideline 2.0, recently inaugurated by the Minister of Health, aimed to improve implementation outcomes by enhancing transparency and accountability in the management of health funds.

 “Federal Government would follow due process to ensure that monies earmarked for the implementation of BHCPF benefit the most vulnerable layer of the society.

 “The revised guidelines will deepen the understanding of expanded roles defined in the new guideline, which places accountability and transparency at the center of the fund’s management,” he said.