FG Calls on NMA to Tackle Quackery in Healthcare

The federal government has asked the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) to improve accountability and take charge in the fight against quackery in the health sector.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Salako, made this request on Wednesday in Abuja at the NMA’s First Ordinary National Executive Council meeting for the new National Executive Committee for 2026.

This meeting, themed "Transforming Healthcare Practice in Nigeria: Building Trust, Accountability and Collaborative Excellence", gathered medical practitioners, senior professionals, government officials and policymakers.

Mr Salako noted that the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative, signed in December 2023, achieved 84 per cent implementation according to the 2025 Joint Annual Review.

He mentioned that the health sector's share of the national budget rose to 5.2 per cent. Funding from the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) increased from N131.5 billion in 2024 to N299 billion in 2026.

Salako said this rise in investment led to better primary healthcare delivery. "More than 8,000 primary health care centres now receive direct facility financing, close to 4,000 PHCs have been upgraded, and monthly patient visits to Fund-supported facilities have risen from about 10 million in early 2024 to 45 million by mid-2025," he said.

He also spoke about improvements from the Maternal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative. The 172 local government areas with the highest maternal death rates saw a 17 per cent reduction in maternal deaths and a 12 per cent drop in newborn deaths.

According to him, over 48,000 women received free emergency obstetric care, while more than 4,000 free caesarean sections were done in National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) empanelled facilities.

He added that more than 4,700 women had free repairs for vesico-vaginal fistula across 207 facilities.

Regarding health insurance, Mr Salako said coverage increased from around 16 million Nigerians in 2023 to more than 22 million.

He reported that 37,000 health workers were hired in federal hospitals since 2024. The number of medical school quotas has been doubled to 10,000.

He also noted that N110 billion was set aside for upgrading 18 training institutions.

Mr Salako mentioned that a National Policy on Health Workforce Migration and a Diaspora Health Portal have been approved.

He stated that the government is making progress with funding and policy, but patients judge the health system based on their experiences with healthcare professionals.

He urged the NMA to enhance clinical governance, ensure accurate reporting of deaths, and resolve disciplinary cases.

He also criticized absenteeism, the diversion of patients to private facilities, and informal payments by healthcare workers. "The government will never sacrifice public health on the altar of professional solidarity," he said.

On the issue of quackery, Mr Salako called it "homicide by instalment". He pointed out that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) removed falsified drugs worth N1 trillion from Aba, Onitsha and Lagos.

He also announced an investigation into a viral report about an organ-harvesting ring in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

He said the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, through its National Tertiary Health Institutions Standard Committee, developed national standards and guidelines for organ and tissue transplantation.

According to him, these guidelines require informed consent and ban the commercialisation of organ and tissue transplantation.