The allocation to health in 2016 further dropped as experienced for three years consecutively, and the process of passing it has been subjected to further controversy owing to claims that provisions in the budget were reduced, albeit as critical as they are.
According to reports, the executive proposal of N4.06 billion for the provision of test kits, vaccines and anti-retroviral drugs under the Federal Ministry of Health was reduced to N1.01 billion.
As a result of this reduction, there may be vaccines stock-out by October 2016 and, among other things, the gains of polio eradication may be lost, and the government will be hampered in the battle against HIV.
Adding to this, Nigeria’s immunisation funding gap is expected to rise from N1 billion in 2017 to N40 billion by 2020 when all arrangement with the Global Alliance for Vaccine Initiative (GAVI) runs out. From 2020, Nigeria will need to spend approximately $350 million to immunize children every year.
Very large cuts have been made to proposals for many important projects in several MDAs and the sums applied to fund hundreds of new projects.
Despite the economic downturns which have seen government revenues plummet significantly, medical experts warn that in the even government is incapable of improving the situation; it should at the very least not make things worse for the sector.
“It is true that the allocation to health has never been adequate. I am in no way condoning the politics action of health funding after all a nation that cannot guarantee the health of its citizens is not fit to exist. Nonetheless I believe there is little this administration can do at present in respect of improving the health sector particularly when we examine the numerous problems in the country today,” said Oretayo Oni, a medical doctor.
Oni further said “my only hope is that though the administration may not be able to improve the health sector, it should do everything its power to ensure the said sector does not worsen. If u can’t make the soup better, at least don’t let it turn sour.”
The proposed 2016 health budget from observations is not only inadequate but also negates the 15 percent “Abuja declaration”.
In April 2001, heads of state of African Union countries met in Abuja and pledged to prioritize the development of the health sector by allocating at least 15% of their annual budgets to improve the sector. In spite of this commitment, a preview of the trends of budgetary allocations over the years shows that the federal government has been allocating between 5 % and 6% of the budget to health, and it has never exceeded that at any point in time while Rwanda, Swaziland, Ethiopia, Malawi, the Central African Republic and Togo have since kept to the promise of the Abuja declaration.
The federal ministry of health was allocated 257,382,151,746 in the 2016 budget, against 259,751,742,847 in 2015, representing a N2 billion decrease. The N257.3bn being proposed for the Ministry of Health is grossly inadequate in ensuring the wellbeing of Nigerians.
With an estimated population of 173.6million, according to the World Bank, allocation to the healthcare sector by the federal government, on a per capita basis, amounts to N1,488 only ($7.55). In 2015, with an allocation of N259.75 billion and estimated population of 168million, allocation on per capita basis was N1, 546. In 2014, allocation was N264.46 billion, and an estimated population of 160million equates to N1, 653 on per capita basis.
Caleb Ojewale
