From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
Federal Government has approved N12.911 billion for disbursement to the four gateways of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), namely, the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System (NEMSAS), for the fourth quarter of 2024, based on the current BHCPF disbursement guideline.
The approval was granted at the 8th Ministerial Oversight Committee (MOC) of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), which was attended by the Ministers of Health, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, and Dr. Tunji Alausa; Permanent Secretary, Daju Kachollom; Heads of Agencies, Development Partners, and several other stakeholders in Abuja.
The Coordinating Minister of Health, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, told journalists, that the MOC of the BHCPF take extra steps to ensure the effective implementation, transparency, and accountability of the fund, adding that the Committee will reconvene in mid-December to disburse funds for the 1st quarter of 2025.
He said that, additionally, the MOC oversee the BHCPF’s strategic direction, monitors fund disbursement, and ensures alignment among the four implementation gateways, notably, NHIA, NPHCDA, NEMSAS, and NCDC.
The Minister further disclosed that the MOC to has the responsibility to ensure effective utilization of resources to improve access to quality healthcare for underserved populations, coordinate stakeholders and promote adherence to national health policies.
He announced that some observations were made along the line as regards effective implementation of the policy, hence the decision to effect some realistic changes in the disbursement guidelines.
He said: “In alignment with Nigeria’s Health Sector Renewal Initiative and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s endorsement of a Sector-Wide Approach, significant reforms of the BHCPF have been initiated.
“These reforms, led by a sub-committee established during the 5th MOC meeting in 2023, include an ongoing review of the BHCPF guideline, operational architecture reforms, and strengthening governance structures.”
He acknowledged the complaints from the stakeholders as regards delays in disbursement, and assured that a subcommittee, including representatives from the SSHIA, the MOC Secretariat, NHIA, CSOs, WHO, and SPHCDA, will address the delay in disbursement within the next two weeks.
Meanwhile, a memo for the adoption of the revised BHCPF 2.0 guideline, the accountability framework, and the disbursement of funds for the 4th quarter of the 2023 financial year, was presented and considered at the meeting.
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