The Director-General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr Kelechi Ohiri, has stressed the need for Nigeria to embrace domestic resource mobilisation to reduce reliance on external aid and strengthen its health system.
Ohiri spoke on Monday at the opening of the National Health Financing Policy Dialogue in Abuja, where he also called for innovative health financing models.
He described the global health financing environment as one facing multiple transitions, with donor support declining while disease burdens continue to evolve.
“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.
Ohiri noted that Nigeria faced the dual challenge of persistent infectious diseases and rising non-communicable diseases, alongside demographic shifts requiring greater investment in health and education to harness the potential of its young population.
Highlighting Nigeria’s contribution to global health policy, he said the country played a key role in the adoption of a World Health Assembly resolution on strengthening health financing. The resolution urged countries to boost domestic investments, reduce donor dependency and strengthen systems for tracking health financing flows.
According to him, financing discussions in Nigeria must prioritise people, not just infrastructure or models. “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 said.
He outlined the four-day dialogue, which features sessions on community voices, civil society engagement, health technology assessments and financing for mental health.
Ohiri said sustainable and equitable health financing required collaboration across sectors, as well as transparency and accountability.
“Health expenditure in Nigeria is still dominated by out-of-pocket payments. We can no longer continue this way. Expanding financial protection, particularly for the poor and vulnerable, is central to President Bola Tinubu’s agenda, and to our collective effort to achieve universal health coverage,” he added.
He explained that NHIA reforms were being aligned with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare’s investment initiative to ensure equity and financial protection for all Nigerians.
(NAN)