The federal executive council (FEC) has approved several infrastructure projects for the National Hospital, Abuja, to upgrade the facility to a quaternary healthcare institution.
A quaternary healthcare institution is a highly specialised hospital that provides the most complex level of medical care, with a focus on advanced research, experimental medicine and treatments for rare conditions.
Ali Pate, minister of health and social welfare, told State House correspondents on Wednesday after the weekly FEC meeting that the National Hospital, established about 25 years ago, had not received the level of investment in infrastructure and equipment needed to fulfil its original vision.
Pate said the latest approvals followed President Bola Tinubu’s directive to improve healthcare infrastructure and equipment nationwide.
He said the council approved N18.74 million for the refitting of the hospital’s administrative and management block, with the contract awarded to Visible Construction Limited.
The minister said the council also approved N64.92 billion for the construction of modular clinics and a theatre complex, with the contract awarded to Strabbing Construction Limited.
Pate said the project would provide specialised modular clinics and theatre facilities for various medical specialties.
He said a N103 billion contract was approved for the construction of a wing at the hospital, with the contract awarded to CBC Global Civil Construction Limited, with a completion period of 24 months.
According to him, an approval of N69 billion was also made for the construction of a Neuroscience Institute at the hospital and was awarded to CBC Global Civil and Building Construction Limited.
He said the neuroscience facility would provide specialised infrastructure for neurosurgery, radiology, interventional procedures, and rehabilitation.
He noted the facility would be deployed to treat conditions such as stroke, brain tumours, and diseases affecting the brain and nervous system.
“Quality healthcare is not cheap. To have the healthcare system we need, Nigeria has to invest in it,” Pate said.
The minister said that FEC also approved a N302.3 billion contract for the design, construction, furnishing, equipping, supervision, and inauguration of a new National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT) centre.
He said that the contract was awarded to CBC Global Civil and Building Construction Nigeria Limited, with a 36-month completion period.
Pate said the project would strengthen capacity for cancer research, treatment, innovation, and professional training.
He said the new NICRAT facility would serve as a flagship national institution for cancer research and treatment, adding that appropriations had already been made for it in the 2025 and 2026 budgets.
He noted that the National Hospital and NICRAT projects are funded through appropriations made by the national assembly to the relevant agencies and entities, rather than directly through the federal ministry of health.
“Our goal is to ensure that they are executed, and that Nigerians can be able to see a transformation of the National Hospital, as well as a befitting cancer centre here at NICRAT,” Pate added.