The Association of Nigerian Health Journalists (ANHeJ) has issued a strong call for the government to increase the tax on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (SSB) and to double the national budget allocation for basic healthcare. This urgent appeal was made during a recent conference focused on mobilising domestic resources for health, as foreign aid continues to decline.
Urgent Calls for Financial Reforms in Health
In a communiqué released after its conference, themed “Domestic Resource Mobilisation in the Face of Dwindling Foreign Grants and Aids,” the association pushed for critical fiscal changes. The document, signed by ANHeJ President Joseph Kadiri and Secretary Frank Ajufo, demands that the SSB tax be raised to meet World Health Organisation (WHO) standards. They argue this is necessary to match the escalating costs of treating diseases like diabetes.
The group insisted that all revenue generated from this tax must be strictly reserved for funding health initiatives. Furthermore, ANHeJ pressed the executive and legislative arms to act swiftly to increase the allocation from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) to the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) from one per cent to two per cent.
ANHeJ expressed deep concern over Nigeria's excessive dependence on external donors for health funding. “Domestic funding is no longer optional; it is urgent. Delaying health financing decisions today will cost Nigeria more lives tomorrow,” the association warned. They called on all tiers of government to boost financing for routine immunisation, prioritise children who have never been vaccinated, and strengthen overall national health security.
Funding Gaps in Critical Health Areas
The journalists highlighted severe underfunding in several key health sectors. While acknowledging that cancer funding increased from 3% in 2023 to 5.2% in 2025, they pointed out that the National Strategic Cancer Control Plan (2023–2027) requires about N97 billion (roughly $1 billion) annually to be effective.
On family planning, a $27 million funding gap was identified for 2025, with a mere $4 million currently allocated. Regarding vaccines, the group commended the government for releasing N86 billion of the N150 billion pledged for 2025 immunisation but noted this was still far less than the N231 billion originally budgeted.
ANHeJ urged media professionals and civil society organisations to intensify their scrutiny of how the BHCPF is implemented and to monitor the operations of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to ensure transparency and value for money.
AHBN Warns of Looming Public Health Emergency
In a related development at the same event, the Africa Health Budget Network (AHBN) raised a major alarm. The group cautioned that Nigeria is at risk of a national public health emergency due to persistent and widespread shortages of family planning commodities.
AHBN Coordinator, Dr. Aminu Magashi, represented by Ms. Amina Mohammed, lamented that systemic failures in the contraceptive supply chain are denying millions of women and girls essential reproductive health services. He stated that these shortages are directly contributing to a rise in unsafe abortions, unintended pregnancies, and immense pressure on overburdened health facilities.
Magashi described a broken system where pills, injectables, implants, and condoms, procured with donor and government funds, frequently get stranded in warehouses or stuck in transit, never reaching the rural clinics and primary healthcare centres where they are desperately needed. “From Lagos ports to the last-mile primary health centre, the supply chain is broken,” he said.
He painted a grim picture of the consequences if urgent action is not taken: an overwhelmed health system, more maternal deaths, increased child poverty, and a lost opportunity to harness Nigeria's demographic dividend. “These stock-outs will push more girls and women into the hands of quacks,” Magashi warned.
The AHBN coordinator called on the Federal Government to urgently strengthen financing, logistics coordination, and oversight of the family planning supply chain, emphasising that access to these commodities is a critical national development imperative.
