First City Monument Bank (FCMB) has launched a ₦20 billion Healthcare Fund to help private healthcare businesses in Nigeria attract capital and scale, as stakeholders at the bank's inaugural Healthcare Summit in Lagos stressed that the sector needs more than just funding to grow.
Beyond Funding: Building Bankable Healthcare Businesses
At the summit, themed "Financing Growth: Unlocking Opportunity, Building the Future of Healthcare," policymakers, providers, investors, and development partners gathered to address the financing challenge. They agreed that while access to affordable, long-term capital is critical, healthcare businesses must also improve governance, financial reporting, and management structures to become "bankable."
FCMB's Managing Director, Yemisi Edun, represented by Executive Director Felicia Obozuwa, said: "Healthcare is a social imperative and an economic priority. Building a strong healthcare system requires patient, affordable and long-term capital." The fund will finance hospitals, clinics, diagnostic centres, pharmaceutical companies, pharmacies, maternity homes, and other value-chain businesses.
Government's Push for Healthcare Expansion
The private-sector push comes as the government increases public investment. Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Salako, revealed that over ₦339 billion has been disbursed through the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund in the past 12 years, including ₦235 billion in the last three years under the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative. An additional ₦32.9 billion has been released to support more than 8,300 primary healthcare centres, targeting about 13,000 facilities nationwide.
The government's Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain aims to produce 70% of medicines and medical devices locally by 2030. Salako also highlighted efforts to address power constraints in health facilities and create long-term procurement opportunities for local manufacturers.
Addressing the Capital Barrier for Private Operators
Despite government efforts, private healthcare operators still struggle with capital access. Njide Ndili, President of the Healthcare Federation of Nigeria (HFN), said affordable, long-term financing is one of the biggest barriers to growth. However, experience from HFN's partnership with the PharmAccess Medical Credit Fund shows that small and medium-sized healthcare enterprises can be bankable when financing is combined with technical support and capacity building.
HFN, which has over 400 member organisations and 4,000 professionals, will work with FCMB to develop a pre-qualification framework to help healthcare businesses become investment-ready. This includes strengthening governance, financial reporting, and management capacity before accessing financing.
Key Priorities for Healthcare Sector Growth
Summit discussions identified four priorities: expanding fit-for-purpose capital, making businesses more bankable, strengthening public-private partnerships, and boosting local capacity in pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, and medical equipment. Sessions examined blended finance, alternative lending structures, and PPPs, while an executive conversation stressed the importance of business management and risk management alongside clinical performance.
The ₦20 billion fund is positioned within this broader agenda. FCMB said it will complement public-sector investment by providing capital for expansion, equipment, infrastructure, technology, and service delivery. The summit, organized with the Health Business Academy for Africa, marks a shift from merely discussing financing to creating mechanisms that help businesses access capital and scale.
The ultimate goal, according to FCMB, is to build a healthcare ecosystem where stronger businesses, better financing, and strategic partnerships expand capacity and improve healthcare delivery across Nigeria.
