The Federal Government has said the establishment of the National Healthcare Facility Regulatory Agency (NHFRA) would help in addressing the gaps of standard and quality existing in the health sector.
The Minister of State for Health & Social Welfare, Iziaq Salako who received Speaking during the official presentation of the reports/recommendations of the Committee set up on Establishment of NHFRA, gave assurances of studying and activating the agency.
In a statement signed by the Deputy Director
Information & Public Relations of the ministry, Alaba Balogun on Thursday in Abuja, the minister noted that government realised the critical need to establish an independent body that will address the existing gaps of standard and quality, even as he underscored the importance of the overarching objective for setting up the proposed Agency.
Salako went on to assure all professional bodies within the Health Sector that NHFRA is not being set up to undermine any professional leader or take up the work of any existing regulatory body.
He said: “The whole essence is for us to be able to say that these are the standards of practice in the country and have a body that can support states in their regulatory activity because states are already doing regulations, they are the ones that register facilities, and, also have some level of monitoring of compliance of those facilities to their set rules.
“So let me assure you, members of the Committee, that the reports and recommendations are not going to sit on the shelves. We’re going to make every effort to look at how we can activate it to ensure that we improve healthcare sector in our country.”
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary Daju Kachollom mni, affirmed that NHFRA was a timely and visionary response to the longstanding gaps in regulating both public and private healthcare facilities across the country.
Represented by the Director Food & Drugs Department of the Ministry, Pharmacist Olubunmi Aribeana, she commended Richardson Ajayi led committee whose work started in September 2024, for a comprehensive report that not only outlines the framework for NHFRA, but also includes a draft establishment deal, resource mobilisation plan and implementation strategy.
Presenting the report, the Chairman Committee for the Establishment of National Healthcare Facility Regulatory Agency NHFRA Richardson Ajayi asserted that the proposed regulatory agency aligns with federal government’s commitment to achieving Universal Health Coverage UHC and the Sustainable Development Goals ( SDGs) by ensuring that all healthcare facilities meet fundamental standards of care.
