By Adetokunbo FAKEYE
The Nigeria Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako on Friday 28th March, 2025 inaugurated Implementation Committee for National Dialogue on Power in Health Sector.
Dr. Salako, in his inauguration speech at the Headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Abuja, noted that, “the time for experimentation and haphazard adoption of unproven platforms for energy sourcing is over. We can no longer afford business as usual in the face of mounting energy bills of our hospitals. The time has come for all hands to be on deck to relieve our hospitals of the burden of prohibitive cost of power supply which gulps hundreds of millions of Naira monthly.
“This is the time to be creative and innovative as we move to develop and adopt smart energy solutions that will strengthen our health system and empower us to deliver on our core mandate of improving population health outcomes.
“Against this background, the need for a National Stakeholders Dialogue on Power in the Health Sector has become compelling. The objectives of the dialogue will include:
i. To assess the existing power policy environment against the urgency of the energy needs of tertiary health facilities and other public health facilities in Nigeria based on lessons from other low-middle-income countries (LMICs).
ii. To gather field experiences of the current power situation and eliciting practical recommendations and best practices.
iii. To identify alternative and sustainable solutions by exploring renewable energy options, backup power systems, and energy-efficient solutions to enhance power reliability.
iv. To agree on mechanisms to strengthen public-private partnerships for electricity supply to public health institutions in the country.
v. To build consensus on policy and regulatory frameworks, funding mechanisms, and sustainability strategy for efficient power supply to tertiary health facilities and other public health institutions in the country.
vi. To develop a collaborative action plan for monitoring implementation of key agreements of the national dialogue”.
According to the Minister, the proposed National Dialogue will be hosted by his office at a location either in Abuja or Lagos.
“It will be attended by experts from the health and power sectors. Participants shall be carefully selected from the list of mapped stakeholders based on their level of interest and influence. Key decisions and recommendations shall be documented in the Communique and a Collaborative Plan of Action will be developed to monitor the implementation of the decisions through the office of the Honourable Minister of State for Health”.
The Committee terms of reference are to: (i) Convene the National Stakeholders Dialogue on Power in the Health Sector;
(ii) Ensure effective implementation of recommendations from the National Dialogue and (iii) Mobilise resources and attract investments for sustainable electrification of public healthcare facilities, using a whole-of-government approach.
Dr. Salako appreciates the priority attention the health sector has been receiving under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR which, he said, is slowly and steadily taking Nigeria on the path to universal health coverage.
“I appreciate the unwavering commitment of the Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate; the Permanent Secretary, Ms. Daju Kachollom, all the Directors and the entire staff of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, as we work together to implement and deliver on the Presidential Priorities of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR) with respect to transformative health sector renewal.
“I am grateful to the Honourable Minister of Power, ably represented here today, for his commitment to intersectoral collaboration as he join hands to confront and resolve the numerous challenges of energy provision that have become a burden to our healthcare facilities across the country.
“I recognize and commend all the government agencies and parastatals that are represented here today, for considering this critical assignment worthy of your involvement and commitment.
“Special thanks to the development partners and private sector organizations here present, for your consistent support to the Government of Nigeria over several decades, and for willingness to ensure the success of this important task, as we strive together to strengthen Nigeria’s health system and achieve Universal Health Coverage”, Dr. Salako said.
