in Kano

The National Coordinator of the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain (PVAC), Dr. Abdu Muktar, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Kano Independent Research Centre Trust (KIRCT) for the provision of medical equipment to the centre.

Speaking at the ceremony in Kano, Mukhtar described the partnership as strategically aimed at curbing medical tourism by the residents.

According to him, the federal government’s agreement with the centre is designed to revolutionise the healthcare sector through collaborative efforts, leading to improved healthcare outcomes and saved lives.

He lamented on the country’s high import dependency on vaccines and therapeutics medicines, stressing on the need to increase the share of locally manufactured healthcare products.

“Right now, we import about 70-80 per cent of therapeutics that we use as essential medicine, almost 100 per cent of vaccines, 99 per cent of medical devices including test kits and all products including bed nets.

“By 2030 we want to revise that to be able to produce at least 70 per cent of the essential products, vaccines, and essential health products used in this country.

“What we want to do is to build the ecosystem that includes policies, regulation, building the right infrastructure, the human capital and the right talent and the research and development capabilities across the country,” he stated.

The Director General of the centre, Prof. Hamisu Salihu, expressed his profound appreciation to the Presidential Initiative for the landmark agreement, which would significantly upgrade the centre’s medical facilities, bringing them up to modern standards.