The Alliance joined leaders from across government, academia, civil society, the private sector and development partners for a national dialogue, Reimagining the future of health financing in Nigeria, held from 1–4 September in Abuja, Nigeria.
Convened by Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Federal Ministry of Finance, and the National Health Insurance Authority, among others, the meeting brought together key decision-makers, including the Honourable Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, and the Director-General of the National Health Insurance Authority, Dr Kelechi Ohiri, alongside parliamentarians and state leaders.
The dialogue aimed to chart nationally supported, politically feasible strategies to strengthen domestic health financing and reduce Nigeria’s heavy reliance on out-of-pocket payments, which still account for more than three-quarters of total health expenditures.
The Alliance was invited to share global experiences on how research can inform reform of health financing schemes. Dr Robert Marten, representing the Alliance, drew on international experiences, including lessons from the Alliance’s collaboration with India to support the rollout of the PM-JAY national health insurance scheme. He emphasized the importance of investing in local research capacity, building trusted partnerships between policy-makers and researchers, and ensuring that reforms are backed by credible institutions and practical milestones.
As part of the dialogue, Dr Kelechi Ohiri restated the National Health Insurance Authority’s commitment to allocate roughly five percent of its resources to research. The Alliance applauds this forward-thinking step, recognizing the vital role that embedded research can play in shaping effective reforms. Experiences from India’s PM-JAY have shown how research can support design, implementation, and adaptation, and the Alliance stands ready to work with Nigerian partners to achieve similar impact.
“This is an important moment for Nigeria,” Dr Marten noted. “Global health financing commitments are shrinking, but Nigeria has world-class expertise and institutions. By drawing on local research and strengthening collaboration between government, academia, and development partners, the country can lead the way in developing sustainable financing solutions.”
Reflecting on these efforts, Dr Zubin Shroff, who leads the Alliance’s work on health financing, stressed how health policy and systems research can inform both strategies to raise more resources for health and improve efficiency in their use. “Joint action is needed on these two fronts to enable countries to successfully navigate health financing cliffs and transition out of external assistance,” he said.