Health sector investment to exceed $140m on NSIA, IFC collaboration

Investments in the health infrastructure will soon receive a boost, as a collaboration between the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) is set to trigger an upsurge from the current $140million by the authority, BusinessDay can now report.

Coming at a time that the nation’s bank chief executives last week agreed to downplay foreign exchange access to invisibles such as medical bills abroad, the collaboration to increase investments in the sector is timely and is expected to increase life expectancy, with the attendant positive impact on the productive sector of the economy.

The implication of the bankers action, according to some analysts, is that Nigerians would be forced to patronise local hospitals and thereby conserve foreign reserves.

Market watchers say this seeming enclosure should encourage the local healthcare sector to raise its game as well as act as an incentive to foreign hospitals patronised by wealthy Nigerians to establish in the country.

Concerned by the dilapidated nature of the nation’s health sector, NSIA-managers of the nation’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, in collaboration with IFC, organised a roundtable forum which brought over 50 stakeholders, including senior executives from some local and foreign private hospitals, Health Management Organisations and other players in the Nigerian private health sector together.

The forum identified key areas for growth and expansion in the sector, drawing references from the path travelled by other countries in improving the supply of quality healthcare within their jurisdiction.

At a time when considerable investments to curtail the challenges that have reduced the Nigerian health sector to its dilapidated state fall short, the two bodies hosted stakeholders at a round table discussion to foster a collaboration for joint advocacy, project development and investments that will develop the private health sector in the country.

The analysts have expressed optimism on the collaboration, stressing that Forex control on health issues couldn’t have come at a better time for the mobilisation of private capital for health care in Nigeria.

They say this has informed the partnership of NSIA and IFC as it portends that Nigerians may have to look inwards to address health issues and eliminate the huge capital flight out of the country for health purposes annually.

According to Stella Ojekwe-Onyejeli, Chief Risk Officer and Executive Director, NSIA “A research recently conducted revealed that over $1 billion is incurred by roughly 30,000 Nigerians annually on health care services outside the country, so this is a time to hold discussions  to talk on ways of improving the [health] sector and go beyond merely talking to acting.

“Cardiovascular, Orthopaedics, Renal and Cancer treatments make up 80 percent of the reasons for the trips by Nigerians outside the country on health issues,” Onyejeli added.

Eme Essien Lore, IFC Country Manager, reiterating the importance of their collaboration with NSIA, said, “We see the challenges across the [health] sector. Everybody complains about access to capital but there are broader issues that if these group of individuals came together, perhaps, collectively we can help solve.

“IFC is committed to help increase access to affordable quality health care services by financing and facilitating financing for integrated networks. This will support the development of critical health infrastructure and attract private capital into the sector. The level of interest shown in investing in healthcare by local and foreign players will inform the amount the corporation will contribute.”

Expressing optimism in the efforts of the NSIA and IFC in resuscitating the dilapidated healthcare system in Nigeria, Chandra Shekar, President, Corporate and International, Apollo Hospitals Group, the pioneer of private healthcare in India and the country’s first corporate hospital, noted that “India is probably more complex than Africa, we have a population of about 1.2 billion people and statistics say 300 million of them live below the poverty line, yet 85% of our health care is in the private sector.

“Thirty years back, India had no health care sector but IFC has helped us grow thus far by investing in the sector which is why we have a great regard for them. We are continuously engaged with them (IFC) to find solutions where we could take our learning into different parts of the globe and that is why I am here.”

Amid widespread concerns that Nigeria, whose economic policies have attracted criticisms from local and international economists, is unattractive to foreign investors. Shekar said, “We find Nigeria as one of the most attractive economies to invest in Africa, both from the perspective of its sheer size, to the need and demand perspective. We are very open to come up with models which suit us and also the country, in being able to provide good quality healthcare.”

The analysts said that attracting private capital to the sector could also play a pivotal role in earning forex for the country at a point where crude prices- the country’s highest forex earner- is on the downturn.

LOLADE AKINMURELE