Chief Bola Tinubu‘s Minister of State for Health, Tunji Alausa, revealed that Nigeria is becoming a destination for healthcare services, attracting individuals from Europe, India, and Sub-Saharan Africa.
In an interview on Arise TV, Alausa emphasized the affordability of surgical procedures in the country, stating that Nigeria boasts over 900 aesthetic hospitals spread across all states.
Highlighting the advancements in healthcare infrastructure, Alausa pointed out the NSIA LUTH cancer center in Lagos, equipped with state-of-the-art facilities comparable to those found globally.
He noted that individuals from Sub-Saharan Africa are specifically seeking cancer treatment in Nigeria, drawn by the quality of care available.
The minister outlined government initiatives aimed at bolstering healthcare accessibility and coverage nationwide. He mentioned the allocation of “dedicated funds” and partnerships with development agencies to enhance primary healthcare centers and expand insurance coverage.
The minister stated, “Go to the hospital in Lagos, people are coming from India, sub-Saharan Africa, and even Europe to come and get health care in Nigeria.
“Getting surgical operations is cheaper; you will be glad to know that today we have almost 900 aesthetic hospitals all around Nigeria.
“People are coming to get plastic surgeries. Go to LUTH today at the cancer centre, NSIA LUTH cancer centre has state-of-the-art equipment, whatever you can get anywhere in the world.
“We have the linear accelerator; they have everything there. People are coming from sub-Saharan Africa to get cancer treatment.
“We are moving all over the country. This is not only Lagos alone; we are moving to rural areas. We have dedicated funds, and we are aligning what we have in the basic healthcare provision fund, which has more funding now, with our development partners.
“We are aligning more and collaborating more to direct these funds to our primary healthcare centre. We are also directing a lot of these funds to our national health insurance agency to increase coverage.
“Mr President has mandated us to increase coverage from about seven million to about 50 million people to have health insurance in the next two to three years,” he added.
