FG reportedly disbursed nearly N50bn to PHCs and recorded 37 million visits in Q1 2025.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that the Federal Government, through the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF), has disbursed nearly N50 billion directly to over 8,000 Primary Health Centers (PHCs) across Nigeria since 2023, Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, has revealed.
In a post on his X account on Sunday, Pate said the funding has led to more than 37 million visits to PHCs in the first quarter of 2025 alone, demonstrating the impact of data-driven reforms on grassroots healthcare delivery.
Established under Section 11 of the National Health Act 2014, the BHCPF is financed through at least 1% of the Federal Government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund, as well as donations and other sources. It provides a Basic Minimum Package of Health Services, aimed at expanding fiscal space for health and modernizing healthcare infrastructure nationwide.
ALSO: FG Appoints Opeyemi Agbaje as PenCom Chairman Amid NLC Pressure
“From 2023 to date, nearly N50 billion has been disbursed to over 8,000 PHCs, leading to the qualitative modernization of health infrastructure across all local government areas,” Pate said.
He also highlighted that over N20 billion has been invested in rehabilitating and upgrading 4,362 PHCs across 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the BHCPF over the past two years, with similar interventions ongoing in the southern states.
Pate noted that the first quarter of 2025 alone recorded 37 million visits to primary health centers nationwide, underscoring the administration’s commitment to data-driven healthcare re-engineering for Africa’s most populous nation.
“It is my pleasure to share insight into President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Sub-National Health Support Plan,” he said, emphasizing the President’s vision for a harmonized transformation of Nigeria’s healthcare system, from primary care to tertiary and quaternary levels.
As a former CEO of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Pate reiterated that quality healthcare at the grassroots remains a top priority for the government’s reform agenda, covering all 704 local governments and 36 states.
The BHCPF serves as a sector-wide anchor fund, providing additional resources for states and local governments to improve access to primary healthcare across Nigeria. At the tertiary level, Pate revealed that over 300 projects have been executed in northern Nigeria, serving more than 4.5 million outpatients and 1.6 million inpatients, reflecting tangible progress under President Tinubu’s leadership.
He also highlighted the June 2024 executive order that provided tariff waivers on imported pharmaceutical raw materials, a strategic move to boost local drug and biotech production.
Concluding his update, Pate urged Nigerians to remain confident in the government’s reform agenda, expressing optimism that the Tinubu administration will continue delivering measurable improvements to the nation’s healthcare system.
