By Ojoma Akor
The Federal Government of Nigeria is working towards implementing biometric verification across all primary healthcare centres (PHCs) and health insurance platforms nationwide.
This was part of the resolutions contained in a communiqué issued on Friday by the government and other stakeholders at the end of this year’s Health Sector Joint Annual Review (JAR) meeting in Abuja. The meeting was chaired by Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, alongside Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, Minister of State for Health.
The event brought together nearly 1,000 physical participants representing government institutions, development partners, traditional leaders, the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), private-sector organizations, the media, and citizens across all levels.
According to the communiqué, the adoption of biometric verification aims to eliminate ghost workers, strengthen attendance management, and enhance transparency and performance in Human Resources for Health (HRH), drawing from the Gombe model.
It stated, “To formalize this at the National Council on Health (NCH), Gombe will present a case study of biometric registration for potential review and adoption for scale-up; and a memo will also be reviewed on the standardized certification pathway for medical officers to safely perform emergency obstetric procedures.”
The communiqué presented by Daju Kachollom, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health, said the meeting also resolved to operationalize the UHC Compact Addendum by Quarter One of 2026 through a co-created implementation framework with clear ask-and-offer commitments and a robust tracking mechanism.
Stakeholders at the 2025 JAR further resolved to strengthen integrity, transparency, and fiduciary controls by rolling out digital expenditure tracking and biometric attendance across all Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF)–supported facilities by the third quarter of 2026, supported by empowered oversight committees.
The communiqué also noted the government’s resolve to improve data quality and utilization by implementing robust quality assessment plans, optimizing the District Health Information System 2 (DHIS2), and strengthening data culture and management practices across all levels. It further called for advancing HRH reforms through the establishment of a National HRH Programme and exploring the deployment of new cadres for the future health workforce, aligned with Nigeria’s evolving service-delivery priorities and long-term economic ambitions, including value-chain optimization, regulation, and management.
Other resolutions include accelerating and scaling the Maternal and Neonatal Mortality Reduction Innovation and Initiatives (MAMII) programme nationwide; closing the financing gap through domestic resource mobilization and private-sector resource pooling; strengthening Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) and community engagement; and expanding to new LGAs guided by mini-DHS data, with full scale-up of MPCDSR and referral systems by Quarter four 2026.
Additional commitments include improving access to and the quality of Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services through policy domestication, sustainable financing, community engagement, and stakeholder collaboration; expanding health insurance coverage and equity programmes by enforcing employer insurance mandates for all organizations engaging with government; scaling equity schemes; digitizing enrollment and claims; and enrolling 5 million Nigerians—including 1 million additional vulnerable persons—by the end of 2026.
The meeting also resolved to advance local manufacturing and strengthen supply-chain resilience by operationalizing Medipool, incentivizing private-sector investment, and transitioning at least 20 priority commodities to local production, with five new manufacturing plants to become operational by 2026.
These commitments followed observations that reforms under the Presidential Value Chain Initiative are gaining momentum, with new MoUs signed with local manufacturers and more than 40 private-sector entities engaged in expanding pharmaceutical and diagnostics production.
“Early wins are visible in syringes, PPE, and select commodities. Sustained industrial policies, regulatory clarity, and guaranteed demand mechanisms will be essential to scaling local production and reducing dependency on imports,” the communiqué noted.
The communique said Nigeria is also committed to the full release of its counterpart funding for vaccine procurement and to meeting its obligations under the revised Accountability Framework (AF 3.0). The country further pledged to strengthen state and LGA delivery systems to improve readiness, responsiveness, and accountability in the following areas:
- State-level resource mobilization, focal accountability, and performance tracking, ensuring LGA structures align fully with NHSRII priorities.
- Emergency response capacity, through scaling the National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System (NEMSAS) and the Rural Emergency Services and Maternal Transport (RESMAT), and ensuring all PHCs meet minimum readiness standards for CEmONC and timely referral.
- Inter-agency collaboration among government agencies and key actors to strengthen integrated service delivery and facility readiness.
- Accountability for Drug Revolving Funds (DRFs) to eliminate leakages, curb corruption, and ensure uninterrupted access to essential medicines.
The three-day review assessed national and subnational performance under the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) and realigned collective action to accelerate delivery of the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII) and progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
This year’s review—preceded for the first time by State-level JARs—demonstrates Nigeria’s deepening commitment to the NHSRII Compact and the SWAp principles of One Plan, One Budget, One Report, and One Conversation.
A highlight of the meeting was the official signing of the UHC Compact Addendum, which expands the compact to private-sector actors, LGAs, traditional institutions, and other ministries; integrates emerging health-sector priorities; responds to global health financing shifts; and strengthens accountability through clearer ask-and-offer frameworks.
