Determined to boost cancer treatment nationwide, the Federal Government and the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, NSIA, on Friday, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to enhance oncology care in the country.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate and the Managing Director of NSIA, Mr Aminu Umar-Sadiq put pen to paper in Abuja in a cooperation to procure oncology equipment for the management of cancer.
The agreement entails upgrading the equipment in six cancer centres at designated teaching hospitals in the country.
The minister described the event as a milestone because it would mark the end of tragic stories for thousands of Nigerians who struggle to get care for cancer.
Pate said non-communicable diseases including cancers, are among the fastest growing disease burdens in the country.
He explained that NSIA as the manager, is to execute a similar cancer treatment facility project like it did at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital in other teaching hospitals.
“So, NSIA would bring the technical capacity, the experience, and the governance system, following the authority’s relationship with manufacturers of cancer equipment.
“We have seen how they ran that of LUTH and it is a very important partner to government,” said Pate.
He noted that the government oncology initiative hitherto initiated with other hospitals lasted for years without success.
“But this is a different path where we’re using a government-owned entity to execute, where the entity will go directly to the manufacturers, taking away the middlemen.
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“My understanding is that we have almost 30 per cent discount in the cost of equipment by virtue of going to the manufacturers directly, a clear value added of almost N10 billion saved because of the discount,” said the minister.
Pate said that the initial appropriation approved for the teaching hospitals about four years ago remained N17.9 billion, while in 2024, Federal Government appropriated N20 billion, totalling N37.9 billion.
He urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and Civil Society Organisations in the cancer space to ensure all funds for the initiative were monitored to ensure accountability.
Umar-Sadiq said that the organisation had seen first-hand through its facility, the NSIA-LUTH Cancer Centre, the significant impact a localised world class oncology facility can make to Nigerians.
He said that the opportunity to multiply it under a government initiative across the country was something that everyone should be enthusiastic about ensuring its success.
“It is truly a pleasure for the NSIA to play its own small part in making this done. Victory can only be declared when the minister is commissioning these six centres in the next 18 to 24 months.
“Victory really is when these centres are being commissioned with the right equipment, the right civil works completed, the right working capital framework and the right school with the right training strategy for our clinicians and non-clinicians being in place,” said the NSIA boss.
The Chief Medical Director, Jos University Teaching Hospital, Dr Pokop Bupwadata said that the strategy of bringing in NSIA would ensure sustainability in managing the six centres.
He said “just like it was demonstrated in LUTH, they would not need to reinvent the wheel and going that way, it would add value to the Nigerian government and people.”
The CMD, LUTH, Prof. Wasiu Adeyemo, said that when the centre started, it was turbulent; however, with the involvement of the NSIA, it became successful.
Adeyemo said “many Nigerians that used to go to Ghana or UK now come to LUTH. On behalf of Nigerians and the staff of the centre and management of the hospital, we are thankful for this initiative.”
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the signing of the MoU aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s directive to upgrade the six cancer centres located in the country’s six geopolitical zones to enhance cancer treatment.
