Abuja, Nigeria — Nigeria’s health sector stakeholders on Monday presented a united front at the National Assembly public hearing on key health-related bills, with overwhelming opposition to the proposed National Health Facilities Regulatory Agency (Establishment) Bill, 2025 (SB.861) while unanimously supporting amendments to the University Teaching Hospitals Act.
The public hearing was attended by the President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Prof. Bala Audu, represented by former NMA President Prof. Afekhide Ernest Omoti, alongside members of the National Officers Committee (NOC), heads of affiliate associations, chief executives of health institutions, regulatory agencies, and representatives of professional bodies across the health sector.
The first bill considered was the Bill for an Act to Amend the University Teaching Hospitals (Reconstitution of Board, etc.) Act, 2025 (SB.908). Stakeholders unanimously endorsed the amendment but advised lawmakers to broaden its scope to include all Federal Tertiary Health Institutions not currently captured in the proposed legislation, including the Federal University of Health Sciences Teaching Hospital, Otukpo.
The second and more contentious legislation, the National Health Facilities Regulatory Agency (Establishment) Bill, 2025 (SB.861), received overwhelming opposition from virtually every major stakeholder in the health sector.
Those who opposed the bill included the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria (MDCAN), the Nigerian Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP), the Association of Nigerian Private Medical Practitioners (ANPMP), the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), the Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria (MWAN), the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), JOHESU, the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN), the Association of Radiographers of Nigeria, health records professionals, public health practitioners, private healthcare providers, regulatory councils, NAFDAC, and Chief Medical Directors/Medical Directors of federal health institutions, many of whom described the bill as unnecessary in its current form.
The only notable voices in support of the proposed agency were the Nigerian Association of Medical Directors of Approved Private Hospitals (NAMDA) and the technical experts involved in drafting the bill.
Stakeholders argued that establishing another regulatory agency could result in duplication of functions, increased bureaucracy, and conflicts with the mandates of existing regulatory institutions.
The hearing highlighted an uncommon consensus across Nigeria’s healthcare landscape, with professional associations, government institutions, regulators, and healthcare administrators speaking with one voice on the need to strengthen existing structures rather than create additional layers of regulation.
The NMA delegation received commendation for articulating the concerns of the medical profession and the broader health sector. Special recognition was given to Prof. Afekhide Ernest Omoti for leading the Association’s delegation and presenting its position before the National Assembly.
The outcome of the hearing was widely viewed by participants as a positive development for Nigeria’s health sector, reflecting a strong commitment by stakeholders to policies that promote effective healthcare governance and improve service delivery.
