A recent report on the health preparedness of states in Nigeria saw Lagos, Ondo, Cross River, Ogun and Kwara state emerge as the top five most prepared states in Nigeria.
The report, titled: ‘The 2021 SBM Health Preparedness Index’ was made by the Geopolitical and Socioeconomic Research firm, SBM Intelligence and was released on Thursday, June 3, 2021.
According to the report, the share of healthcare spending as a percentage of the overall budget grew due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The 36 states spent an average of 8.26% of their budgets on healthcare in 2019, compared with over 11% in 2020.
What the report said
The 2021 SBM Health Preparedness Index partly stated:
“All 36 states had to revise their budgets due to the impact of the pandemic on state revenues. However, health budgets were not affected by these cuts, for the most part. As a result, the share of healthcare spending as a percentage of the overall budget grew. Put together, the 36 states spent an average of 8.26% of their budgets on healthcare in 2019, compared with over 11% in 2020.
Only 11 states allocated above 10% on healthcare in 2019. In 2020, that number rose to 20.”
The report stated that the methodology for the index includes: doctor-population ratio carries the greatest weight (30), followed by infant mortality (25), Human Development Index (20), portion of budget spent on health (10), per capita budget (10) and household size (5).
The top 5 states in the 2021 Index are Lagos, Ondo, Cross River, Ogun and Kwara. The bottom 5 are Yobe, Kano, Zamfara, Jigawa and Kebbi.
In terms of improvement, Enugu and Plateau state moved up 6 places, while Rivers, Ekiti and Kaduna moved up 4 places each. Imo state sank 13 places to 21st, while Zamfara went down 10 places to 34th. Adamawa and Taraba regressed by 5 and 4 places respectively.
“Improved healthcare outcomes demand consistent investment over time while paying close attention to the doctor to population ratio The methodology remains the same as last year’s index,” the report stated.
In case you missed it
In a bid to boost Health Preparedness in the fight against Covid-19, Nairametrics reported last week that Nigeria will build 38 oxygen production plants, one in each state and the FCT to improve medical infrastructure
