The Federal Government has approved the disbursement of N12.9 billion through the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) for the third quarter of 2024. This amount represents the 2023 fund allocation for the quarter, in line with the 2020 BHCPF guideline.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, disclosed this at the 7th meeting of the BHCPF Ministerial Oversight Committee in Abuja. He stated that the government has authorized the disbursement of N25 billion through the BHCPF across the states in March 2024 for direct facility financing and workforce incentives.

According to available data, from 2019 to 2022, the total funds disbursed through the BHCPF amounted to an estimated N89 billion. However, only 7,250 out of the 35,514 Primary Healthcare Centres in the country are currently benefiting from the BHCPF.

To address the implementation challenges, the government is undertaking urgent comprehensive reforms to the BHCPF, including an ongoing review of the BHCPF Guideline and proposed reforms for the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) and National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).

These reforms aim to better align resources and improve health outcomes, such as increased antenatal coverage, skilled birth attendance, immunization rates, and overall health insurance coverage in Nigeria.

The Executive Director of NPHCDA, Dr Muyi Aina, stated that the reforms and disbursements are part of ongoing efforts to implement the Sector-Wide Approach and government reforms, aimed at improving coordination and resource efficiency across various gateways.

The focus is on working closely with each state to refurbish and improve the quality of primary health centres, utilizing resources from both state funding and external sources like World Bank loans.