‘Kano Has Met Abuja Declaration On Health’- Ganduje

Kano state governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has said that his government has met  the 2008 Abuja Declaration on Health.

The Governor made the disclosure while declaring open the 53rd Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference and Biennial Congress of the African Federation of International College of Surgeons (AFICS), organised by the International College of Surgeons  Nigeria National Section, held at Government House, Kano on Thursday.

Dr. Ganduje stated that since coming on board in 2015, his government has accorded health sector in the state utmost attention because without adequate healthcare services no tangible and desired development could be achieved in a given society.

The 2008 Abuja Declaration has it that each state of the federation should allocate 15% of its yearly budgetary allocation to health sector. To achieve the target, our government keep increasing the health sector budgetary allocation and by 2019 15% was allocated as proposed by the Declaration”, the Governor explained.

Represented by the Acting Executive Secretary of Hospitals Management Board, Dr. Muhammad Dahiru Shehu, the Governor enumerated some achievements recorded by his administration including completion of the two abandoned health facilities, the Muhammadu Buhari Specialist Hospital and Sheikh Isyaku Rabiu Pediatric Hospital and equipped with the state-of-the-art equipment.

A statement issued by Public Relations Officer, Kkano state Hospitals Management Board Ibrahim Abdullahi said Dr. Ganduje informed the gathering that it is now over four years without a single case of poliomyelitis in Kano, stressing that with this development Nigeria is expected to be declared polio free country in recent time, adding that the state-of-the-art cancer centre is under way to confront cancer cases.

On health sector financing, Dr. Ganduje said that kano State government has created Kano Health Trust Fund where 5% of generated state IGR and 1% of statutory allocation of 44 local governments will be dedicated to the agency in addition to the establishment of Contributory Healthcare Scheme and Agency in order to ensure sufficient funds are pump into the health sector of the state.   

Earlier, the President International College of Surgeons, Prof. A. M. E Nwofor, extended their appreciation to Governor Ganduje for, not only giving them health facilities to conduct outreach surgical campaign but for magnanimous logistics support to the local organising committee to convert its meeting into a workable reality.