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Resident Doctors urge increased sectoral budget to enhance public health

*The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors calls for an increase in the country’s health sector budget from the subsisting five percent in the 2022 Budget to 15 percent, as recommended at the 2001 Abuja declaration for health financing in Africa

Alexander Davis | ConsumerConnect

In a move to discourage the ‘brain drain’ syndrome in the health sector, and substantially improve the health of Nigerian consumers, the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has called on the Federal Government to increase the budgetary allocation for the significant sector of the economy.

ConsumerConnect reports the Resident Doctors have advocated a budgetary allocation increase from the subsisting five percent in the 2022 Budget to a figure closer to 15 percent, as recommended at the 2001 Abuja declaration for health financing in Africa.

Dr. Osagie Ehanire, Honourable Minister for Health

The Resident Doctors made the appeal in a communique issued Sunday, January 30, 2022, following their National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, tagged: “ABUJA 2022”.

NARD said the theme of the NEC meeting as “Changing Faces and Phases of COVID-19: Problems and Prospects”.

According to the Association, this will not only help to improve the members’ welfare but will also contribute to reducing the ‘brain drain’ reportedly being experienced by health workers in Nigeria.

The communiqué also stated: “We urge the Federal Government to take steps towards curtailing medical brain drain.

“The Federal Government should look towards increasing the budgetary allocation of the health sector from the subsisting 5% in the 2022 budget to a figure closer to 15% as recommended at the 2001 Abuja declaration for health financing in Africa.

“This will enable more employment in the sector, improved welfare and service conditions for health workers, and also an upgrade of health facilities and equipment in our institutions across the country.”

The NEC as well noted that the Federal Government has paid the withheld August and September 2021 salaries to its members, and also paid the 2021 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF).

However, NARD disclosed that some members were yet to receive payment of their omitted 2020 MRTF.

It, therefore, urged the Federal Government to expedite action on the payment of omitted 2020 MRTF to members before the 2021 fiscal year runs out in March 2022.

The Resident Doctors applauded Governors of Delta, Benue and Lagos States for “blazing the trail in the adoption/domestication of the 2017 Medical Residency Training Act (MRTA) and also payment of Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF) to resident doctors in their states.”

The Association as well urged other states to emulate them in payng the MRTF to its members.

According to NARD, states still owing arrears of salaries and allowances include Abia (23 months), Imo (10 months), Ondo (6 months) and Ekiti (3 months).

It further noted: “This is becoming inhuman and embarrassing.

“We also appeal to the Governors of Delta (1 month) and Gombe (2 months) states to release the withheld salaries of our members in the respective states, so as to alleviate their sufferings,” NARD added.

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