Nigeria is at a low position on the World Bank Human Capital Index (HCI), ranking only higher than six out of 174 countries worldwide in 2020.
The HCI measures the likelihood that a child born today will not only survive but also contribute significantly to the economy as they mature.
With a life expectancy at birth of 55 years, Nigeria holds the unfortunate distinction of having the fourth-lowest life expectancy globally.
This alarming statistic is indicative of the formidable challenges the average Nigerian faces, including high rates of endemic infections, an upsurge in chronic diseases, and an elevated risk of epidemics.
In 2001, African leaders convened in Abuja, acknowledging the pressing issues confronting the African health systems. They collectively committed to allocating 15% of public funding annually to fortify healthcare throughout Africa.
However, Nigeria has consistently fallen short of meeting this declaration, resulting in an inadequately funded healthcare system that struggles to respond effectively to major outbreaks.
Health budget in Nigeria
- While advocates often emphasise the need for increased funds, the spotlight is frequently on the Federal Government.
- Nevertheless, the crucial role of states and local governments in addressing these health challenges cannot be overstated.
- These entities contribute significantly to annual public expenditure, and according to Nigerian law, they possess autonomy to manage their health systems.
- This autonomy extends to providing leadership through the State Ministry of Health and its associated departments and agencies.
To shed light on the variance in healthcare funding across states, we present a ranking of the states with the highest expenditure budgets allocated to their healthcare systems. Based on their 2023 budget, these are the top 10 states in Nigeria spending more on health:
Akwa-Ibom
Approved 2023 budget: N700 billion
Health expenditure budget: N28,357,156,230
Percentage for health: 4.05%
Akwa-Ibom State distributed its 28 billion to its Ministry of Health, Primary Health Care Development Agency, Hospitals Management Board, State Task Force on counterfeit and fake drugs, and State Committee on Food and Nutrition.
Jigawa
Approved 2023 budget: N185,075,000,000
Health expenditure budget: N29,288,320,000
Percentage for health: 15.83%
The health budget was disbursed to the state’s Ministry of Health, general hospitals, psychiatric hospital, tuberculosis and leprosy hospital, Agency for the Control of AIDS, primary healthcare development agency, college of Nursing & midwifery, school of Nursing, School of Midwifery, school of health technology, and specialist hospital.
Bauchi
Approved 2023 budget: N202,641,558,614.46
Health expenditure budget: N30,415,945,966.20
Percentage for health: 15.01%
The state allocated funds to the Bauchi State Ministry of Health, the primary healthcare development agency, the hospital management board, and the College of Nursing and Midwifery.
Delta
Approved 2023 budget: N571,636,910,991
Health expenditure budget: N30,611,851,128
Percentage for health: 5.36%
The beneficiaries of the state’s health expenditure budget are the state’s ministry of health, Hospitals management board, specialist hospitals, traditional medicine board, schools of nursing, state schools of midwifery, primary healthcare development agency, state school of health technology, state action committee on AIDS, contributory health commission, maternal and childcare centres, diagnostic medical complex, drug rehabilitation centre, and trauma centre.
Katsina
Approved 2023 budget: N289,633,257,963
Health expenditure budget: N33,080,439,103.30
Percentage for health: 11.42%
The N33 billion was dispensed among the state’s Ministry of Health, contributory healthcare management agency, primary healthcare development agency, hospitals management board, college of Nursing & midwifery, College of Health Sciences, Department of Drugs, narcotics and human trafficking, drugs and medical supply agency, and Katsina state Agency for the control of AIDS.
Oyo
Approved 2023 budget: N310,432,500,000
Health expenditure budget: N36,358,058,808
Percentage for health: 11.71%
Oyo state distributed its N36 billion to the state’s Ministry of Health, hospital management board, primary healthcare development agency, Oyo State health insurance agency, LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, College of Nursing & midwifery, and College of Health and Technology.
Rivers
Approved 2023 budget: N544,699,687,799
Health expenditure budget: N41,527,099,029.34
Percentage for health: 7.62%
The health budget was disbursed to the Rivers State Ministry of Health, primary healthcare development agency, Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, hospital management board, emergency medical services, free medical care programme, and College of Health Science and Technology.
Ogun
Approved 2023 budget: N472,250,694,447.57
Health expenditure budget: N51,533,917,617.88
Percentage for health: 10.91%
The state allocated the funds to the Ogun State Ministry of Health, Ogun State Health Insurance Agency, Primary Healthcare Development Board, Covid-19 Preparedness & Response Board, Ogun State Road Safety Advisory Council (Ministry of Health), Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, hospitals management board, state hospitals, Ogun state alternative medicine board, and college of health technology.
Kaduna
Approved 2023 budget: N376,456,634,924.66
Health expenditure budget: N59,092,052,675.74
Percentage for health: 15.7%
The beneficiaries of Kaduna’s state health expenditure budget are the state’s Ministry of Health, contributory health management authority, primary healthcare development agency, health supplies management agency, bureau for Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment, Kaduna State AIDS Control Agency, Barau Dikko Teaching hospital, and college of nursing & midwifery.
Lagos
Approved 2023 budget: N1.768 trillion
Health expenditure budget 2023: N149.353 billion
Percentage for health: 8.45%
N149.353 billion was dispensed to the state’s Ministry of Health, primary healthcare board, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Lagos State University College of Medicine, Lagos State Health Management Agency, board of Traditional Medicine, College of Nursing & Midwifery, Health Monitoring and accreditation agency, blood transfusion service, accident & emergency centre (Drugs and Medical consumables), general hospitals, maternity & children hospitals, and health service commission.
