‘States should leverage PPP to deliver universal health coverage’

Mukasidi Muhammad, commissioner for health, Niger State, has urged state governments to leverage public private partnership (PPP) being facilitated by the Africa Resource Centre for Excellence in Supply Chain Management (ARC_ESM) to deliver essential health services at an affordable cost to Nigerians.

Muhammad spoke at the recent third leadership breakfast meeting, hosted by the Niger State ministry of health in partnership with the Africa Resource Centre for Excellence in Supply Chain Management (ARC_ESM) and the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (PMG-MAN).

The commissioner said this would lead to the attainment of universal health coverage, urging the state governments to leverage their strengths for economies of scale with a significant impact on addressing primary health care facility coverage and cost of essential services.

In his presentation, “On my watch, universal health coverage is achievable: Making quality and affordable essential medicines available through the Niger State Drugs and Hospital Consumables Management Agency and its PPP partners,” Muhammad spoke of the impacts of the PPP in helping to fund the healthcare system in Niger State.

“We are not only looking at the social component of the Drug and Hospital Consumable Agency, but we are also keen about the agency’s business model as this will help us improve the source of funding to the healthcare system.

“At the moment, the Niger State government has a total investment portfolio for the PPP of N124, 330, 979.”

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He stated that state governments and other actors should work to achieve improved supply chain performance in the pharma space by ensuring a reduction in the staggered supplies, which impact on-time and in-full (OTIF) deliveries, a critical universal health coverage key performance indicator.

Speaking at the event, Azuka Okeke, the CEO at Africa Resource Centre for Excellence in Supply Chain Management (ARC_ESM), said “The third leadership breakfast meeting is a business meeting and not a showcase event’.

Azuka said stakeholders would agree at the end of the meeting on expanding the PPP in the health sector to improve access to essential health commodities at affordable prices.

While noting that the PPP has helped save costs, the CEO of ARC-ESM cited the Kaduna State Government as a shining example.

“A market survey conducted by the Kaduna State team showed that between May and November, the commodities purchased from the PPP to check cost-savings saved N66 million, showing that the PPP is a good marriage.”

Also speaking, Henrietta Bakura Onyeneke, the national coordinator of NPSCMP, commended states that have started implementing the national supply chain strategy plan.

“Aside from that, we are also going deeper into the national drug policy and implementing the patronisation of our local manufacturers,” said Onyeneke.