Nigeria’s 2026 National Diaspora Day and Local Health Systems: Equitable Healthcare Delivery as Challenge
Bola A. Akinterinwa
Celebration of National Diaspora Day is a potent instrument of self-projection, self-reliance, and sustainable economic development in international relations. An act of celebration is a framework adopted in order to achieve some objectives. An act can be as important as the purpose of celebration. India celebrates its National Diaspora Day, Pravasi Bharatiya, every January 9. The day marks 9 January 1915 when Mahatma Ghandi returned to India from South Africa to lead the struggle for independence. The day is also to celebrate the Indian Diaspora’s contributions to national development.
Similarly, the United Nations set aside 11 November as Armistice Day to remember history and raise awareness. Every 8 March is celebrated as International Women’s Day to recall, remember and commemorate women’s struggle for equality and liberation. It is a global day to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. 19 November of every year was set aside as International Men’s Day in 1992 in Malta by Thomas Oaster. The objectives of the Day are as provided in ‘All the Six Pillars of International Men’s Day’: promotion of positive male role models, celebration of men’s positive contributions to society, focusing on men’s health and wellbeing, highlighting discrimination against men in the areas of social services, improving gender relations and promotion of gender equality, and creating a safe and better world for men to reach their full potential. Whatever men and boys stand for in the society are celebrated on this day. There are also the Fathers’ Day and Children Day. There is also the United Nations Day, every 24 October. The day reminds of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter.
In Nigeria, strongly believing in the capacity and capability of Nigerians in the Diaspora to help advance national development, the NiDCOM (Nigerians in Diaspora Commission) set aside in 2019 every July 25 to celebrate and recognize the contributions of Nigerians living abroad to national development. The 2026 celebration was particularly noteworthy, because of its focus on equitable healthcare delivery which has been more of a challenge.
Need for Equitable Healthcare Delivery
The situation of the local health systems in Nigeria is appalling and challenging. Healthcare delivery is characterized by disparities in the various regions of Nigeria. In response, the Federal Government set an agenda of achieving a Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by 2030, that is, in about three and a half years to come. However, there is nothing to suggest any nearness to achieving the objective.
In terms of challenges, rural areas are hardly given any priority attention when facilities are provided. It is the urban centres that are often given about 60% of the medical professionals and facilities. About 40% of the Nigerian communities reside in more than five kilometres from the nearest medical facility. There are more medical professionals in southern Nigeria than in Northern Nigeria. Unlike the Sub-Saharan African average of 35%, out-of-pocket expenses account for about 72% of household healthcare spending. And true enough, only 5% of the population is protected by health insurance.
And perhaps more disturbingly, while more than 70% of the population depend on Primary Health Care (PHC), not more than 20% of the facilities are functional for reasons of lack of medication and dilapidated infrastructure. According to the Federal Ministry of Health, there are an estimated 40,017 registered healthcare facilities in Nigeria. Analytically, 20% of the registered facilities that are functioning represent only 8,003.4. In other words, 70% of Nigeria’s estimated 250 million people (175,000,000) depend on the 40,017 facilities. If 175 million Nigerians rely on only 8,003.4 facilities in the whole country how can an efficient healthcare delivery system be possible? Apart from this, there is the issue of marginalization of people with disabilities for whom there are no physical accessibility. There are no ramps and language interpreters to make life easy for them.
These are some of the major healthcare challenges where the assistance of Nigerians in the Diaspora is expected and on which Honourable Abike Dabiri-Erewa has always focused greater attention. The Government of Nigeria promulgated the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Act, which makes health insurance compulsory for all citizens and residents in the country. The NHIA guarantees health insurance for all, ensures access to healthcare through the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) and the Vulnerable Fund, and compels all healthcare providers to deliver quality services by enforcing excellence and expanding the variety of available services. In addition, for the purposes of equity, health professionals have suggested that the Government should accept to fund the premium coverage for the 83 million poorest Nigerians who are incapable of self-payment. Government is also making strenuous efforts to revitalize the whole primary healthcare. The target is to begin with the revitalization of 10,000 PHC centres.
Government is particularly leveraging on technology to improve healthcare delivery, especially by providing low-bandwidth options, SMS alerts, and USSD codes in local languages in the rural areas. Not only is the Community Health Influencers, Promoters, and Services (CHIPS) program provided to build bridges between formal public systems and informal care providers, institutional reform for inclusion of persons with disability is also carried out.
With all these efforts, can the Government efficiently and promptly carry the funding of healthcare burden alone? Have the non-governmental organisations no role to play? What about the Nigerians in Diaspora and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission? These questions largely explain the raison d’être for the organization of annual celebration of the National Diaspora Day in Nigeria. The Government cannot do it alone and several speakers pointed out this inability clearly during the discussions. Many critical issues were raised but four of them were noteworthy: issue of brain drain, need for unity of all the Diaspora associations, greater commitment by way of adequate funding and provision of equipment and healthcare facilities, and the disconnecting relationship between home-based, and the Diaspora, physicians.
In his goodwill message to the 2026 National Diaspora Day Youth Empowerment Summit yesterday, Engineer Alfred Irabor Okoigun, Director of Argo Group Plc, noted that ‘the greatest investment any nation can make is not in its infrastructure, its natural resources or even its technology. It is in its people.’ The reason he gave is not far-fetched: ‘buildings can be constructed. Machines can be purchased. Technology can be imported. But the knowledge, character and creativity of a generation must be intentionally developed.’ And perhaps more importantly, he said ‘across the world today, Nigerian doctors, nurses, pharmacists, researchers and other healthcare professionals continue to distinguish themselves through excellence, innovation and leadership.’ Consequently, in his eyes, the challenge is to ensure that ‘this global expertise is not admired from a distance but connected to the aspirations and potential of young Nigerians here at home. Brain drain must increasingly become brain circulation, where knowledge, innovation, mentorship and investment flow back to strengthen our nation.’
Career Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, not only advised on the need not to see ‘brain drain’ as a ‘brain loss’, but as a ‘brain circulation,’ requiring special management into ‘brain gain.’ He insisted on the need to have a united Nigerian Diaspora especially in light of Government’s position that considers the Diaspora as a strategic asset and not as a burden. The Minister reminded of the re-ordering of the doctrine of the 4-Ds which now makes the Nigerian people the epicenter of Nigeria’s foreign policy. In other words, Nigeria’s foreign policy thrust of ‘Africa as Cornerstone’ from 1960 to 1976 has been thrown into the dustbin history. In the same vein, ‘Africa as Centerpiece’ of Nigeria’s foreign policy from 1976 to June 2026 now also belongs to the garbage of history. The doctrine of 4-Ds (Democracy, Development, Demography, and Diaspora) has been re-ordered to give primacy to demography as centerpiece of foreign policy. More important, migration is not a crime and should not be criminalized, Ambassador Enikanolaiye explained and commended the impressive turn out of the Nigerians in Diaspora. He expressed the commitment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to strengthening efforts of the NiDCOM in achieving its mandate.
Senator Aniekan Bassey, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and non-governmental Organisations advised on the need for a stronger partnership with the Nigerian Diaspora in the areas of research, mentorship, telemedicine and healthcare investment. In the same vein, NiDCOME’s Head of Media, Public Relations and Protocol Unit, Mr. Abdur-Rahman Balogun, reporting, has it that the global expertise of Nigerians in Diaspora ‘could strengthen the country’s healthcare system and (therefore) called for policies that encourage greater diaspora participation.’
More importantly, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (PBAT), represented by Senator George Akume, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, said ‘our Diaspora is a source of national pride. Across the world, Nigerian doctors, nurses and public health leaders are saving lives, advancing science, and shaping global healthcare. Beyond their personal success, they remain deeply connected to Nigeria. Their expertise, their commitment are invaluable resources for our national development.’ PBAT could not have been more correct. Nigerians in Diaspora are truly a source of pride. This is why celebration is enough a reason to justify a dedicated day for them.
2026 National Diaspora Day and
Health care Delivery
The 2026 National Diaspora Day took place on Friday 24th and Saturday 25th July, 2026. It was organized by the NiDCOM in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Nigeria Diaspora Medical Associations across the World, the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), Federal Ministry of Education, the Nigerian Medical Association, and some other stakeholders.
The 2026 National Diaspora Day is particularly significant when compared with previous celebrations. Without any whiff of doubt, every new Diaspora celebration is given a new dimension. On 24 July, 2019, every 25 July was declared as National Diaspora Day henceforth. The first celebration day was on Saturday, 25 July, 2020. The theme was “Leveraging Diaspora Resources for National Development in a #Covid_19 Era.” In 2021, the theme was “Diaspora Integration for National Peace and Development.” While the 2020 Diaspora Day focused attention on leveraging Diaspora Resources, the 2021 Diaspora Day underscored the unity of the various Nigerian Diaspora associations.
And true enough, the special interest of Honourable Dabiri-Erewa in national unity and development prompted her to set up a committee, comprising some leaders of some Diaspora associations under the chairmanship of Professor Bola A. Akinterinwa. The mandate of the Committee included the identification of all the existing associations of Nigerians in Diaspora in the world, identification of their challenges as associations, identification of the obstacles militating against their unity, as well as recommendations for possible solutions, especially in the area of the need for one Diaspora organisation.
Some associations are ethnic and cultural background-driven while some others are profession-defined. Honourable Dabiri-Erewa sees all of them as one, and therefore, began to provide institutional frameworks for their unity.
The need for patriotism also caught her attention and “Building a Culture of National Patriotism” was adopted as the theme of the 2022 National Diaspora Day. If the culture of patriotism is promoted, forging ahead with unification cannot but be helped. In 2023, the theme was “Consolidating Diaspora Engagement for National Development.” The theme was most appropriate because of the need to sustain the efforts at building the culture of patriotism which is still lacking in Nigeria of today. In 2024, the theme was “Japa Phenomena, Its Implications for National Development,” while the 2025 theme was “Optimising Formidable Diaspora Potentials for National Development.”
What is mind boggling is the frequent interest shown in national development. Every theme was designed to bear in mind the need for national development. It is therefore not a surprise that the 2026 celebration also has a very challenging theme: ‘Harnessing Global Diaspora Medical Expertise to Strengthen Local Health Systems for National Development.’ This theme has three layers of objective:
immediate, medium and long-term objectives. The immediate objective and challenge is how to harness the Diaspora medical expertise.
There are not less than 3,895 Nigerian-trained doctors in the United States. In the same vein, there are thousands of Nigerian medical and paramedical practitioners in the Diaspora. An estimated 15,692 Nigerian-trained and licensed medical doctors are practicing in the UK in comparison to only 7,800 doctors in 2020 and 11,000 in mid-2025 (vide https://punchng.com). Internationally speaking, only India is ahead of Nigeria in terms of primary contribution by internationally-trained medical doctors in the UK.
These figures clearly suggest an increasing number of doctors leaving Nigeria. As good and as bad this brain drain may be, the thinking of the NiDCOM Chief Executive, Abike Dabiri-Erewa is that brain drain can always be turned into brain gain, regardless of the reasons for the brain drain: low pay, long hours of work, inclement work environment. And true enough, Brain Drain enables wider exposure and acquisition of new knowledge. New experiences prompt entrepreneurial interests, capitalization, and solvency. It is precisely the combination of this medical entrepreneurial experience that Honourable Dabiri-Erewa is making all efforts to attract Nigerians in the Diaspora.
At the medium term objective level is the need to strengthen the local health systems. Strengthening efforts require improvement of the primary care access, empowering community engagement, as well as enhancing local leadership. Strengthening efforts have the ultimate objective of making communities prevent diseases, deliver sustainable care and respond to health emergencies. Put differently, strengthening requires placing priority on daily basis local health services that prevent illness, as well as treating cases promptly before worsening. Training, equipping and retaining local medical members of staff is a desideratum. Local leadership must be assisted to make decisions relevant to their needs. So is the upgrading of infrastructure and supplies.
The third level of objective of the theme is national development. By national development, we mean the pursuit of economic and social development, making the environment conducive for creativity and productivity, addressing issues of infrastructure, human settlement, corruption and public accountability. The ultimate objective here is to have a holistic improvement in the quality of life and living standards for all citizens.
To a great extent, the NiDCOM is perfectly on course in making progress. It is serving as an advocacy by pressurizing the National Assembly to pave the way for Diaspora voting. Since the introduction of the merit award, 91 Nigerians in the Diaspora have been decorated with badges of Diaspora Excellence and National Diaspora Merit Award across sports, humanitarian service, and science. The NiDCOM has an agenda for a National Diaspora Health Corps that will engage 1,000 health professionals annually. Investments summits have been scheduled to take place in Abuja and Toronto in August 2026 in partnership with the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria. This collaboration is to enable diaspora access to affordable housing at home. This is also scheduled to be launched in August in the United Kingdom.
There was the period Nigerians in Diaspora were on record to be remitting an average of $25 billion to Nigeria annually before 2019. There has been a decline thereafter. As noted by Honourable Dabiri-Erewa, diaspora remittances grew from $17bn in 2019 to $21bn in recent time.
In essence, 24 and 25 July were colourful and historic. Everyone saluted the commitment and doggedness of Honourable Abike Dabiri-Erewa, alias Mama Diaspora, in the promotion of Nigerians in Diaspora as a potent tool in national development, and particularly in strengthening healthcare service delivery. The NiDCOM is undoubtedly most committed to national unity, wellbeing of Nigerians, and national development. Whatever Honourable Dabiri-Erewa has done so far cannot be a surprise. When she was a journalist with the Nigerian Television Authority, she anchored the Newsline programme for five years (until 2003). The programme was promoting fairness, justice, and societal wellbeing, particularly of the poor. The case of a child, Mary, called a miracle baby, was claimed by three different mothers. The claim was investigated by Mama Diaspora. Mary was returned to the legitimate mother. It cannot be surprising therefore to learn that, as Chairman and Chief Executive of the NiDCOM, she still strongly believes that nothing is impossible with determination and resilience, that everyone should learn how to overcome challenges and develop skills. And true enough, she shows unflinching commitment to the unification of all the Nigerian Diaspora associations. It is with this frame of mind that the NiDCOM can boast of having put in place the Diaspora Healthcare Impact Initiative (DHII), the National Diaspora Merit Award since 2023, the Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit (NDIS), the Diaspora Data Mapping Scheme, NiDCOM Youth Empowerment Summit, the Badagry Door of Return, etc. And again without doubt, the NiDCOM has ‘moved from policy to impact.’ Enabling Dabiri-Erewa to say ‘we are one nation, one people. The journey continues and the best is yet to come.
While the journey continues, some thought-provoking issues raised at the various sessions ought to be addressed. For instance, there is the issue raised by Dr. Benjamin Anyanwu at the panel chaired by Dr. Henrietta. His father died at 92 and his sister died at 42 years of age. He left Nigeria in 1996 and came back only ‘to relearn.’ To relearn what? Adaptability. He called his Nigerian colleagues on phone to know the circumstances surrounding the death of his sister, but the calls were to no avail. Perhaps more disturbingly, Dr. Anyanwu had difficulty in convincing his colleagues to do what is more appropriate, especially in terms of modern medical technology. Why the difficulty? Whatever is the case, it has been so far so good, but local doctors and those in the Diaspora must reconcile their conflict of interests.
