Health advocates urge FG to increase 2018 health budget

From Mohammed Ibrahim, Kaduna

National Advocates for Health (NAH) have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to increase health budget and ensure timely releases in 2018.
The group said it is also committed to track the implementation of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (HUWE) using an accountability framework.
These were among the resolutions of a one day Symposium on “framing for advocacy and accountability for effective implementation of 2018 National Health Budget, Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) and Global Financing Facility (GFF) convened by the group in Abuja.
The group chaired by Professor Dapo Ladipo has observed the following: The 2018 approved budget is about N9.12 trillion out of that N356 billion is earmarked for health which represents 3.9%.
They said When compared to the 2017 health budget, which was an aggregate sum of N308.464 billion being 4.15% of the 2017 approved budget; the Federal Government commitment to the 2001 Abuja declaration of allocating at least 15% of total national budget to health is declining rather than improving.
They also observef that the 2018 approved budget has earmarked in the health capital expenditure the sum of N55.15b to the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).
“while this is commendable , however we notice that it is not captured as a statutory transfer as provided by section 11 of the National Health Act, 2014.
“As a matter of urgency, we call on President Muhammadu Buhari to submit a supplementary health budget to the National Health Assembly in order to raise its percentage to at least 7.5% this year and in subsequent years raise the budget by 1% point increase.
“The president is called upon to also direct his Minister of Finance to release the N55.15 billion at once earmarked for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund and when commencing 2019 budgetary process to ensure it is captured as a statutory transfer,’the group said