Gov. Mohammed Bago of Niger State has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to comprehensive health reforms, stronger systems and sustainable partnerships to improve access, quality and equity in healthcare delivery.
Bago made this known at the opening of a two-day external retreat of the Niger State Ministry of Health on Friday in Kaduna.
The retreat was supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
The governor, who was represented by the Head of Service, Mr Abubakar Idris, said the state government remained committed to implementing its health sector agenda through stronger coordination, sustainability and system strengthening.
He announced the merger of primary healthcare with secondary and tertiary healthcare services to enhance oversight and ensure integrated service delivery across the state.
Bago said Niger State was intensifying efforts to achieve strong performance in the 2026 Primary Healthcare Challenge.
He added that health sector funding would be increased in 2027 to improve access, quality and equity, and to accelerate progress toward meeting the Abuja Declaration targets.
The governor appealed for continued technical support, financial assistance and strategic partnerships to consolidate gains in the health sector.
He assured development partners of prompt and consistent counterpart funding to enhance credibility and effectiveness in joint health interventions.
Bago also expressed appreciation to development partners for their sustained collaboration and support in improving health outcomes for residents of the state.
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Murtala Bagana, said Niger State was drawing lessons from Kaduna State’s coordination with development partners, including UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO), Gavi and the Gates Foundation.
Bagana said the state was introducing a new health agenda built on six pillars under the Bago-led administration.
According to him, the first pillar focuses on transforming the ministry’s culture and public image, while the second pillar centres on revamping healthcare infrastructure and addressing both supply and demand gaps.
He said rebuilding trust and credibility with development partners constitutes the third pillar.
Bagana added that the fourth pillar involves institutional transformation, including the establishment of a delivery unit to drive daily implementation of health plans.
He said continuous capacity building for health workers was also central to effective service delivery, while primary healthcare reform remained another major pillar of the agenda.
The commissioner further disclosed that Niger State aimed to become a centre of excellence for medical tourism.
He announced the approval of a medical school at the Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna, the establishment of a Federal Medical Centre in New Bussa, and plans for major infrastructure upgrades.
According to him, the reforms would help build manpower pipelines and provide state-of-the-art healthcare facilities across the state.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the Niger State House of Assembly Committee on Health, Mr Muhammad Nasir, said the assembly had passed several bills and motions to support health sector revitalization.
Nasir added that the legislature had also provided budgetary backing, with the governor assenting to key allocations for the health ministry.
The Kaduna State Commissioner for Health, Dr Umma Ahmed, said the state prioritized health through a 15 per cent budgetary allocation, workforce recruitment and facility upgrades.
Ahmed said Kaduna State had upgraded 255 primary healthcare centres to Level Two and revitalized 15 secondary health facilities.
She added that the state procured 23 ambulances and inaugurated emergency and rural transport health services.
According to her, Kaduna had also implemented the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) and Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) to improve remuneration and reduce health worker attrition.
Ahmed said Gov. Uba Sani prioritized health because productivity depended on a healthy population, adding that Niger State was on track for total health sector revitalization through focused planning and stakeholder engagement.
In his contribution, the UNICEF Health Specialist, Kaduna Field Office, Dr Idris Baba, said UNICEF was supporting health system strengthening, particularly in planning and coordination.
Baba noted that poor water and sanitation, inadequate malaria control and malnutrition continued to perpetuate disease cycles.
He said UNICEF would continue to support coordinated government action to achieve improved health outcomes in Niger State.
