Despite calls for MDAs harmonisation, Nigerian govt set to establish health facilities regulatory body

The Nigerian government is set to establish another agency to be responsible for the regulation of healthcare facilities in the country.

This is in defiance of the recent directive by President Bola Tinubu on the implementation of Stephen Oronsaye Presidential Committee on Restructuring and Rationalisation of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Tunji Alausa, on Wednesday inaugurated a committee tasked with the role of establishing the National Health Facility Regulatory Agency (NHFRA), described as part of the efforts to improve healthcare services across the country.

The agency, according to the minister, will serve as a regulatory body for health facilities, ensuring that citizens get the highest standard of care.

The new development may have called to question the commitment of Mr Tinubu-led administration to carry out the much touted harmonisation of the MDAs as announced earlier in the year.

As part of the efforts to implement the report, the President set up an eight-member committee and gave it a 12-week deadline to ensure necessary legislative amendments and administrative restructuring needed for effective implementation.

The members of the committee include the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; the immediate past Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Folashade Yemi-Esan; Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu; and Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Lateef Fagbemi, among others.

However, while it is not clear if the committee already submitted its report, the new action of the health ministry indicates poor commitment of the government to the calls for cutting costs of governance by many Nigerians.

New committee

At the inauguration of the committee in Abuja on Wednesday, Mr Alausa said it will be chaired by Richard Ajayi, an expert whose profile details could not be obtained as of the time of filing this report.

Also on the list is the incumbent Commissioner for Health in Ogun State, Tomi Coker, and others including Ajibike Oyewumi, Manason Garkuwa, Aminat El-Imam, Abubakar Kullima, Damilola Matti, Njide Ndili and Tosin Runsewe.

Others are: Omede Idris, Iseko Iseko, I. Anukwu, Adebimpe Adebajo, Ndagi Aljassan, Jimoh Saludeen, Kamil Shoretire, Mariya Saleh, and Benson Cole.

The minister explained that based on the need for a robust regulatory framework, the mandate of the committee is multifaceted and crucial.

Mandate

Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Tunji Alausa (PHOTO CREDIT: @DrTunjiAlausa)

Mr Alausa said the agency being planned is of utmost importance given that healthcare facilities are the frontline in the battle against diseases, “as well as the sanctuary where life begins and is often saved.”

The minister said a thematic area for the committee was the creation of a governance model and structure, describing it as the first step in designing the organisational structure of the NHFRA.

The creation of a legislative framework, operational guidelines, stakeholder engagement, and resource mobilisation are some of the core mandates of the committee, according to the minister.

He urged committee members to make a lasting impact on the nation’s healthcare system through the establishment of NHFRA.

He said the agency will be a cornerstone in the government’s effort to ensure that every health facility in the country operates at the highest standards of safety and quality.

The minister said: “It is the government’s duty to ensure that these institutions operate at the highest possible standards, providing care that is not just adequate, but exemplary and ethical.

“Formation of this committee stands as a testament to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration’s dedication to this cause. We know that effective regulation is the foundation of a healthcare system that is safe, efficient, and equitable.”

Model

Mr Alausa said the country is drawing inspiration from global best practices as obtainable in the United Kingdom’s Care Quality Commission (CQC).

He said this commission has set a gold standard for healthcare regulation by improving transparency and accountability through comprehensive inspections and ratings of health and social care services.

Nigeria, he said, is on the path to replicating such high standards for its health system.

Substandard healthcare facilities

Nigeria’s health system is faced with a series of challenges, part of which is poor service delivery at many healthcare facilities.

In many cases, medical facilities, particularly primary healthcare centres (PHC), service delivery is weak resulting in the provision of sub-standard medical care.

This, in part, is responsible for the country’s poor health indices.

According to the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), the provision of sub-standard care contributes to the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections (HAI) which the country currently grapples with.

The agency said treating the burden of HAIs gulped 3.8 per cent of the total healthcare expenditure for the health sector in 2023.

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HAIs are infections that patients acquire while receiving treatment for medical or surgical conditions within a healthcare setting.

The agency noted that healthcare seekers are also highly prone to HAIs in hospitals and primary health centres due to low levels of prevention and control in hospitals.