Gates Foundation to Partner Nasarawa on Healthcare
To boost effective primary healthcare delivery across the thirteen local governments of Nasarawa State, the state government has indicated a plan to collaborate with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The Director of Integrity Delivery of the Foundation, Mrs. Dona Hovels gave this revelation when she led officials of the foundation on a courtesy call on Governor Tanko Al-Makura at the Lafia Government House recently.
Hovers explained that Nasarawa State was among the seven other pilot states identified where the foundation would focus on transformation of primary healthcare delivery.
The leader of the Gates Foundation’s delegation further explained that the primary priority of the foundation would be targeted at poor women and children from the identified states with a view of enhancing such vulnerable groups’ access to qualitative healthcare.
While responding to the interest of the foundation, Nasarawa Governor Tanko Al-Makura expressed delight at the gesture while affirming that healthcare delivery and education form the policy thrust of his administration.
The governor mentioned that prior to his administration in Nasarawa State, the state had up to seven hundred Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) which were mostly dysfunctional.
Al-Makura explained that his government had to centralise the dysfunctional system through the Primary Healthcare Development Agency, which made them operational and expansive.
Governor Al-Makura assured the foundation that primary healthcare in the state would be accorded the needed attention in a bid to deliver quality health services to the needy women and children and to help reduce maternal mortality and infant mortality in the state.
Maternal and infant mortality rates in Nigeria are still relatively high compared to other countries of the world, despite all the efforts of government at all levels to combat mortality and help realise the crucial health Millennium Development Goals established by the United Nations as benchmarks for a better world and an improved existence for the peoples of the world.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has given out billions of dollars in grants and donor funds to fight various diseases around the world, including malaria and polio, and has also been supporting health initiatives in Nigeria.