May 16, (THEWILL) – Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, has charged the State Primary Healthcare Board (BSPHCB) to seek alternative sources of funding to complement the financial support from the State Government and local councils to achieve set goals in the primary health subsector.
The Deputy Governor gave the charge when the Chairman, Dr. Markson Amaegbe-Tamuno; Executive Secretary, Dr William Appah, and members of the Board paid a courtesy visit to his office in Government House, Yenagoa, on Tuesday.
To achieve its objective of efficient primary healthcare delivery to the people, he said it was expedient for the Board to solicit funding from the multinational oil companies operating in the state, including Shell, Agip, Aiteo, Conoil and several others.
Ewhrudjakpo, who disclosed that the state’s community health insurance is now part of the Bayelsa Health Insurance Scheme (BHIS), made a case for pyramid funding to enable the primary health subsector, which occupies the bottom rung of the health system, enjoy better resource allocation.
He argued that primary healthcare requires more funding and human resources to run effectively, stressing that its inefficiency largely accounts for the plethora of cases being handled at the secondary and tertiary levels of the health management system in the country.
Speaking further, the Deputy Governor disclosed that the government would soon set up a special task force to move to every part of the state to identify and immunise children who are yet to receive immunisation, particularly in remote parts of the state.
To this end, he directed the Board to deploy a greater number of the six water ambulances donated recently to the State Government by UNICEF and GAVI Foundation to operate in predominantly riverine local government areas of the state.
His words: “We appreciate the efforts of your board towards improved primary healthcare service delivery in the state. But to be more effective, the board should deploy the six water ambulances donated by UNICEF to predominantly riverine areas of the state
“In the area of funding, we really want you to think outside the box to source funds from the international oil companies operating in the state. They should contribute to your funding as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) to complement what comes from the state and local governments.
“While we are looking at the issues of recruitment of primary healthcare personnel, renovation of dilapidated health centres, we will (also) soon set up a special task force to identify and immunise the 20,000 children whom UNICEF reported had not been immunised in the state.”
Delivering his address, the Chairman of the Bayelsa State Primary Healthcare Board (BSPHCB), Dr. Markson Amaegbe-Tamuno, requested the government to approve the recruitment of more health workers to be deployed to the grossly understaffed health centres across the state.
Dr. Amaegbe also appealed for the renovation of some dilapidated health centres, the provision of a more befitting office for the board, and the constitution of local government primary healthcare authorities.
In another development, the Bayelsa State Deputy Governor has directed the eight local government chairmen in the state to immediately commence the preparation of their annual budgets covering May to December 2024.
He gave the directive while presiding over a meeting with the council chairmen and their Rural Development Authorities (RDA) counterparts at his office in Government House, Yenagoa
Highlighting the importance of initiating the budgetary processes in line with relevant laws on financial accountability, public procurement and due process, the Deputy Governor stressed the need for councils to deliver capital projects to complement the development efforts of the State Government.
He, therefore, called on the chairmen to work closely with their respective legislative arms to ensure that their appropriation bills are presented by the end of this month for speedy passage and implementation.
Ewhrudjakpo equally directed the local government chairmen to collaborate with the RDA chairmen in their respective areas to inaugurate capital projects already completed in the various rural development areas.
About the Author
Amos Okioma is a Correspondent at THEWILL
