Legislative Initiative for Sustainable Development

Nigeria's Hypertension Burden: Budget, Policy and the Path Forward
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Stakeholders have called for urgent measures to address barriers to effective public health financing for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Nigeria.

At a capacity-strengthening workshop for Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) on public financing for NCDs and the implementation of the NCD Multi-Sectoral Action Plan (NCD-MSAP), participants identified low budgetary prioritisation, weak donor interest, and fragmented funding as key challenges driving high out-of-pocket spending.

National Coordinator of the NCD Division at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Alayo Sopekan, noted that although the government has introduced taxes on alcohol, sugar-sweetened beverages, and to***co since 2015, the proceeds are not being channelled toward addressing NCDs.

Policy and Advocacy Officer at LISDEL, Olympus Adebanjo, highlighted poor alignment between MDAs’ budgets and the NCD-MSAP, with some agencies achieving as little as 23 per cent alignment.

“About 45 per cent of MSAP activities receive no allocation at all, and even where funds are budgeted, they are often not clearly identifiable,” he said.