The Nigerian Medical Association has slammed the federal government’s handling of the health sector in 2025, citing poor leadership, inadequate funding, and a lack of focus on healthcare delivery as major issues.
Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Lagos State branch, Dr Saheed Babajide Kehinde, while reviewing the sector in 2025, described the year as largely disappointing, blaming the Minister of Health and Social Welfare for what he called poor performance and saying President Bola Tinubu’s administration didn’t prioritise healthcare enough.
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One major problem, Kehinde said, was the government’s failure to tackle the worsening “Japa syndrome” – the mass migration of healthcare workers seeking better opportunities abroad.
“There was a complete lack of interest in addressing the exodus of doctors and other health professionals,” he stated.
He also mentioned poor pay, weak welfare packages, and inadequate training opportunities as contributing factors.
The NMA chairman also criticised the government’s handling of strikes by health sector unions, saying that poor conflict management led to prolonged industrial actions that denied citizens access to essential healthcare services.
He accused the Health Minister of focusing too much on data collection and international partnerships, neglecting core healthcare delivery.
On the bright side, Kehinde acknowledged modest improvements in hospital infrastructure, particularly building construction.
Looking ahead to 2026, Kehinde called for improved wages and living conditions for healthcare workers, measures to curb Japa syndrome, and better working environments.
He advocated non-taxable call duty allowances, an end to assaults on healthcare workers, and policies promoting safer workplaces.
For service delivery, he urged the government to improve universal health coverage, expand health insurance, and reduce healthcare costs through lower tariffs on equipment and drugs.
He also called for implementing the proposed extension of the retirement age for healthcare workers, focusing on primary healthcare, and stronger public-private collaboration to reduce mortality.
Other recommendations included improving power supply to health institutions, increasing budget allocation to the health sector from about 6 percent to 15 percent and adopting a more inclusive approach to resolving industrial disputes.
Kehinde also proposed establishing specialist hospitals across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones and improving security for healthcare workers.