The New-Life Community Care Initiative (NELCCI) has warned that inadequate manpower, empty drug shelves, leaking roofs, and other infrastructural deficiencies are undermining patients’ access to quality HIV, Tuberculosis (TB), and malaria services.
Mrs Florence Ifeanyi-Aneke, Executive Director of NELCCI and State Coordinator of Civil Society in Malaria Control, Immunization, and Nutrition (ACOMIN), made the statement on Wednesday during a stakeholders’ meeting in Enugu.
Ifeanyi-Aneke said a survey conducted by the organization in Adamawa, Anambra, Delta, Enugu, Niger, Kwara, Kebbi, Ondo, Ogun, and Oyo states revealed critical gaps in community health facilities.
Speaking on the theme “From Shortages to Solutions: Addressing Staff Shortage, Commodities Stock-Out and Infrastructure Gaps in Community Health,” she noted that many health facilities remain under severe strain.
“Many primary healthcare centres operate with just one or two staff covering round-the-clock shifts, leading to inconsistent service delivery. The absence of security personnel has also exposed some facilities to vandalism and theft. Several facilities reported shortages of essential items such as HIV test kits, essential drugs, and rapid diagnostic tools, forcing patients to seek care elsewhere or abandon treatment,” she said.
Ifeanyi-Aneke added that infrastructural decay—including cracked walls, leaking roofs, lack of functional toilets, power supply issues, and inadequate drug storage spaces—remains a significant barrier to safety and service uptake.
She highlighted that the Community Engagement and Strategic Initiative, funded by the Global Fund under GC7, had helped communities identify gaps, advocate for solutions, and hold leaders accountable. Notable improvements were recorded in two pilot communities, Mkpologwu and Amorji in Enugu State.
“Our focused group discussions in Mkpologwu and follow-up advocacy visits to key stakeholders, including the then Commissioner for Health, led to government action, resulting in a new health facility being built. Our outreaches and sensitization efforts have improved community members’ understanding and utilization of HIV, TB, and malaria services. We monitor facilities to ensure patients receive the best possible care, which has helped the government identify areas for improvement,” she said.
Ifeanyi-Aneke called on government agencies at all levels to prioritize investments in staff recruitment, consistent supply of medical commodities, and rehabilitation of dilapidated facilities. She also urged private organizations, philanthropists, and the media to support infrastructure upgrades, staff welfare, and essential supplies while amplifying community voices to hold decision-makers accountable.
“Solving the triple challenge facing Nigeria’s primary healthcare system requires collective responsibility by all stakeholders, including traditional and religious leaders,” she added.
Dr Ifeyinwa Ani-Oshekuo, Executive Secretary of the Enugu State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, said the government would address the challenges in the two communities. Represented by the Assistant State Health Educator, Uche Igbo, she noted that the Gov. Peter Mbah administration is renovating and establishing new health centres to improve healthcare delivery in Enugu.
Dr Ifeoma Otiji, Programme Manager of the Enugu State Malaria Elimination Programme, represented by Anthonia Onyishi, Logistics Officer, said malaria could be cured permanently, but prevention requires Integrated Vector Management (IVM), including indoor residual spraying, larval source management, and environmental sanitation. She added that the interventions remain capital-intensive.
Mrs Gloria Okafor of Mkpologwu community praised the initiative, saying, “We have come to tell the world the good things these people are doing for us. They have built a maternity centre for us, almost complete, free of charge. We did not contribute anything.”
