Corruption Is Affecting Primary Healthcare Delivery – FG

The federal government on Thursday said corruption has been affecting efforts made to ensure efficient primary healthcare delivery in the country.

The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Ali Pate said this on Thursday, in an opening address at “Engendering Corruption-Free Primary Health Care Delivery” conference, in Abuja.

Speaking at the conference organized by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare; Dr Pate said bad system and corrupt working staff were responsible for corruption affecting primary healthcare delivery across the country.

Pate added that private sector, civil society and communities hosting primary healthcare centers are all to be blamed for corruption affecting primary healthcare delivery in the nations.

He said, “Recent incidents, such as the reported pilfering of therapeutic foods meant for acutely malnourished children, in one of the states, underscore this issue.

“Corruption is not only a matter of individual bad actors but also a systemic problem that permeates different levels of governance, in varying degrees, from budget allocations to procurement processes and service delivery. It also includes private sector, civil society and communities condoning, enabling, or rejecting it.”

The Minister of Health and Social Welfare said to improve a healthy population, corruption must be addressed.

“Improving population health outcomes for all Nigerians requires us to tackle these systemic issues head-on,” he said.

Ali Pate said a joint task force team between by Ministry of Health and ICPC would be formed to monitor the financing and activities relating to primary healthcare delivery. He said the intention is to prevent corrupt practices.

“Going forward, the Ministry of Health will collaborate very closely with the ICPC to enhance prevention of corrupt practices. We will revisit previous corruption risk assessments and system studies to identify gaps and areas for improvement.

“Enhanced monitoring mechanisms will oversee the flow of funds and resource utilization at the primary health care level, including hotlines and web portals for reporting irregularities.

“We will engage with civil society and local communities to foster transparency and accountability, deterring corrupt practices and encouraging more ethical behavior,” he said.

He added that capacity training would be organized for health workers and regulatory bodies to ensure professionalism in service delivery.

“Additionally, we will invest in capacity building and training programs for health workers and regulatory bodies to ensure they are equipped to uphold their professional standards,” Pate added.