The Abia State Government has allocated ₦16.6bn in the 2025 budget to upgrade the state’s schools of nursing and midwifery, ensuring the training of highly skilled healthcare professionals.
Governor Alex Otti, while speaking during a media chat on Thursday night, emphasized the importance of strengthening the healthcare workforce and improving medical training facilities.
“We must complete that this year. We have to train nurses, healthcare professionals. It is a major area of need,” the governor stated.
In addition to this initiative, the state has committed ₦10bn to the construction and renovation of 200 primary healthcare centers across Abia. Otti disclosed that five centers are now ready for commissioning, while 125 others are at various stages of completion.
“We are not where we want to be, but we definitely are on the way. A few weeks ago, less than two weeks ago, we flagged off the project of building 200 primary health care centres. Some of them have already started receiving attention,” he said.
The governor assured that the funds for the project are readily available to ensure timely completion.
“The total budget allocation for the 200 health centres is in excess of ₦10bn. I am happy to report that the ₦10bn is sitting in the account of the Ministry of Health. So anyone that is ready, we are going to pay them,” he assured.
Beyond primary healthcare, Otti highlighted efforts to upgrade tertiary healthcare institutions, particularly the Abia State University Teaching Hospital.
“The tertiary health institution at the State University Teaching Hospital is already on the run. The regulatory authorities have also included the number of admissions that can be done within the university. So things are going well,” he said.
Acknowledging the impact of healthcare worker migration abroad, commonly referred to as “Japa syndrome,” the governor suggested that it could also serve as an opportunity for the state to generate foreign revenue.
“If we get to the level where we are spotting experts to generate foreign currency, why not? All we need to do is to encourage our people to go to those schools. Those schools will be standard,” he said.
Additionally, Governor Otti revealed that over 800 free medical missions have been conducted in partnership with international organizations from Belgium and Syria, providing critical medical interventions to hundreds of Abians.
“Our medical missions are going on. We have conducted close to 100 major surgeries. We have done over 800 medical missions. They are still here until the weekend,” he stated.
Reaffirming his administration’s commitment to accessible healthcare, the governor assured that no Abian would be denied medical care due to financial constraints.
“For us, as a government, we are very, very serious about healthcare. Anyone who has a medical challenge should get good care,” he assured.
