By Princess Simon (Bureau Chief North Central, in Minna)
In Niger state, all the 396 health personnel that were engaged under the UNICEF and GAVI-supported initiatives have been absorbed into Niger state civil service.
State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Murtala Mohammed Bagana who disclosed this during the official unveiling and distribution of appointment letters said the step is part of strategies aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery system and address dearth of manpower across communities in the state.
Unveiling and distribution of appointment letters, he said underscores the state government's commitments towards sustaining quality and affordable healthcare services at the grassroots levels.
The Commissioner, represented by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Abdullahi Imam, further explained that healthcare services take place largely within communities and the facilities serving them.
Development partners such as UNICEF and GAVI had earlier identified critical shortages in human resources to manage healthcare facilities and therefore initiated discussions with the state government on how to address the challenges.
The Commissioner said, “While state government may provide modern infrastructure and medical equipment, effective healthcare delivery cannot be achieved without adequate number of qualified manpower".
“The partners had expressed willingness to invest in young healthcare professionals and therefore sought for assurances from the state government that beneficiaries of the programme would eventually be integrated into permanent employment due to the long-term nature of healthcare needs".
The immediate past administration under Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, he said signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the initiative, while Governor Umaru Bago reaffirmed the commitments which led to the eventual absorption of the personnel into the state's workforce.
Dr. Bagana further pointed out that the newly employed health personnel comprising; nurses, midwives and community health workers who have already spent between two and three years rendering services within various communities are now fully under the state government's payroll.
The health workers would continue to render services in the same areas where they had built experience and community relationships, Dr. Bagana said and encourage any of them willing to further their education and rise into higher professional cadres to do so.
The Commissioner commended Governor Bago for investment in the state's health sector since the inception of the administration, said more than 3,000 healthcare professionals, including doctors, pharmacists, nurses, laboratory scientists and community health workers were recruited in the past three years.
The Executive Director of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Inuwa Junaidu, had earlier described the absorption of the GAVI-supported staff as evidence of the Bago led administration's commitments towards improving the state's healthcare.
Also speaking, the Programme Manager Pharm. Daniel Jiya, described the event as successful outcome of a three-year journey marked by determination and collaborations among critical stakeholders.
While encouraging the newly absorbed health workers to regard their appointments as a privilege, Daniel Jiya charged them to adhere strictly to state civil service regulations. NNL.
