Dialogue opens in Abuja with NHIA stressing domestic funding, as FG backs reforms with ₦2.4trn health budget and target of 44m enrollees by 2030
Dr. Nafisat Makinde
Abuja, Nigeria.
1 September,2025
The Director-General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr. Kelechi Ohiri, on Monday opened the National Health Financing Policy Dialogue in Abuja with a call for stronger domestic resource mobilisation to reduce donor dependence and secure sustainable healthcare for Nigerians.
Ohiri said the country was at a critical transition point that required more home-grown financing solutions to address the simultaneous burden of infectious and non-communicable diseases.
“We are at a point of transition to government financing where, going forward, there has to be broader reliance on domestic resources. Our health system cannot afford the luxury of transitioning from infectious to non-communicable diseases slowly; we are dealing with both simultaneously,” he said.
The NHIA chief stressed that citizens must be placed at the heart of reforms, warning that financing decisions should not be restricted to infrastructure but must protect people.
“People must be at the centre of the health system and at the centre of what we finance. That is why we are starting this dialogue with voices from the media, civil society and communities,” he added.
He recalled Nigeria’s recent sponsorship of a World Health Assembly resolution to improve domestic investments, reduce fragmentation in financing and strengthen expenditure tracking. According to him, NHIA is consolidating fragmented schemes, expanding risk pools and improving purchasing mechanisms to ensure Nigerians access care without financial hardship.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Salako, reaffirmed government’s commitment to universal health coverage, pointing out that the federal health budget had grown from ₦434 billion in 2018 to ₦2.4 trillion in 2024, representing 5.18 per cent of the national budget.
He said the National Assembly also approved an additional ₦300 billion to cushion the impact of reduced donor funding.
Salako described the NHIA Act 2022 and the Vulnerable Group Fund as game-changers, revealing that four million Nigerians have enrolled in insurance within 18 months. The government, he said, is targeting 44 million enrollees by 2030.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, urged shared responsibility among all tiers of government, the private sector and civil society.
“Health financing must be built on efficiency, equity and shared responsibility. No single actor can carry the burden alone,” he cautioned.
Pate noted that households still account for about 70 per cent of health costs, with per capita spending at just $120, two-thirds of which comes directly from individuals.
Discussions at the dialogue also considered proposals to double the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF) from one per cent to two per cent of consolidated revenue, alongside innovative financing models such as public-private partnerships and earmarked taxes.
The four-day dialogue, themed “Reimagining a New Era of Health Financing,” runs from September 1 to 4, 2025 in Abuja. It features sessions on community engagement, health technology assessment and mental health financing.
Goodwill messages from civil society groups stressed the inclusion of vulnerable populations, while development partners pledged continued technical support but urged Nigeria to strengthen domestic mobilisation. Private sector representatives also signalled readiness to support insurance expansion and health infrastructure development.
As the sessions continue, the consensus among participants is that Nigeria’s future health financing strategy must reduce reliance on external aid and harness domestic resources to protect citizens and achieve universal health coverage.
