Nasarawa’s Health Investment Exceptional, Says Gwamna, as Lafia PHC Is Commissioned

Timescope News 

Nasarawa State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Gaza Gwamna, has described the state government’s investment in healthcare under Governor Abdullahi A. Sule as exceptional, saying it is gradually transforming healthcare delivery across the state.

Gwamna spoke on Monday at the commissioning of the newly constructed and fully equipped Engr. A. A. Sule Primary Health Care Centre in GRA, Lafia. The facility was built by the Lafia Local Government Council, led by its Chairman, Hon. Mohammed Alhaji Halliru (Arabo), and named after the governor in recognition of his commitment to development.

The commissioner commended the Lafia Local Government Council for the initiative, describing the facility as more than a conventional primary healthcare centre. He said its quality showed that local governments were beginning to place greater emphasis on providing healthcare infrastructure that meets their communities’ needs.

According to him, the standard of the GRA facility reflects wider improvements in Nasarawa’s health sector, particularly at the primary healthcare level.

Gwamna also cited a recent assessment of primary healthcare facilities in the state by independent verifiers engaged by the Federal Ministry of Health. He said the team visited several facilities, including one along the Doma Road axis, and expressed satisfaction with the infrastructure, services and human resources available.

The commissioner explained that for a primary healthcare centre to function effectively, infrastructure must be supported by adequate personnel, including Community Health Extension Workers, nurses, midwives, pharmacy technicians and visiting medical officers. He said the state government had continued to recruit health workers to address manpower needs across its facilities, adding that the latest recruitment would help provide personnel required to operate facilities such as the newly commissioned centre.

Gwamna said the state’s investment in healthcare was not limited to primary healthcare but also covered general and specialist hospitals across the state.

“I can’t start here to mention a lot of achievements we’ve recorded in health,” he said, noting that the extent of the interventions would become clearer as more health facilities across the state were inspected. He commended Governor Sule for sustaining investment in the health sector, noting that healthcare remained one of the major areas benefiting from the administration’s infrastructure and service delivery initiatives.

Speaking at the commissioning, Governor Sule commended the Lafia Local Government chairman, Hon. Arabo, for what he described as vision, proactive leadership and commitment to improving residents’ health and well-being.

The new facility is expected to bring healthcare services closer to residents of GRA and adjoining communities and help reduce pressure on secondary healthcare facilities in Lafia.

The commissioning was attended by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Agbadu Akabe; members of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly; members of the State Executive Council; legislators; local government officials; and other dignitaries.