(DDM) – Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, has urged Nigeria’s three tiers of government to take coordinated responsibility in transforming the nation’s troubled healthcare system.
Diaspora Digital Media (DDM) gathered that Mr. Gbajabiamila made the call at the 63rd Founder’s Day celebration and 18th Horatio Oritsejolomi Thomas Memorial Lecture held at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, where he emphasized that sustainable healthcare delivery can only be achieved through shared accountability among the federal, state, and local governments.
He explained that while the federal government is responsible for setting health policies and managing tertiary institutions, the state governments oversee secondary healthcare services such as general hospitals and specialist centers.
According to him, local governments are expected to coordinate primary healthcare centers, the first line of defense for millions of citizens, but many councils lack the capacity, funding, and human resources to manage these facilities effectively.
Mr. Gbajabiamila stressed that without strong collaboration, Nigeria’s healthcare system would continue to lag behind, especially in rural and underserved communities.
“In the context of healthcare,” he said, “political leaders must set priorities that put health at the heart of national development.
The federal government cannot carry this burden alone. Real transformation depends on what happens at the state and local levels.”
The presidential aide lamented that Nigeria still records alarming health statistics, with over 512 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births and around 54 infant deaths per 1,000 live births.
He added that less than 10 percent of Nigerians currently have access to health insurance coverage.
“Our doctor-to-patient ratio remains one of the worst globally, far below the World Health Organisation’s recommendation,” Gbajabiamila noted.
He warned that these grim figures represent real human suffering, “lives lost, families broken, and futures dimmed”, and called for urgent political will to confront the crisis with sincerity.
Despite billions allocated to healthcare by successive administrations, Mr. Gbajabiamila said corruption and poor management continue to undermine progress.
He argued that the health system can only thrive when funding transparency is matched with accountability and innovation.
He further called for collaboration between governments, civil society, and the private sector, describing it as the only way to mobilize resources and bring lasting improvements to Nigeria’s medical infrastructure.
“Public-private partnerships have worked in some states,” he said, “where private firms manage public hospitals under performance-based contracts. This approach boosts efficiency, enhances accountability, and maintains affordability for ordinary Nigerians.”
The Chief of Staff also highlighted the need for better coordination of essential public health programs such as immunization, maternal care, and treatment of common diseases, to ensure accessibility in both urban and rural areas.
He urged policymakers to adopt a bottom-up approach, focusing on local communities where the majority of health challenges persist.
Mr. Gbajabiamila concluded by reminding leaders that healthcare is not just a social service but a foundation for national development and economic stability.
As Diaspora Digital Media (DDM) reports, his speech has reignited public debate over the state of Nigeria’s health sector, which continues to struggle under the weight of brain drain, poor funding, and inadequate infrastructure.
Many experts have since echoed his call, saying that unless the country reforms its governance approach to healthcare, emphasizing local empowerment and transparent funding, Nigeria risks another decade of preventable deaths and a worsening national health crisis.
