CBN Commits N85.89bn to 82 Health Projects
The nation’s health sector on Tuesday received a boost as the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) said it has financed 82 health projects worth N85.89 billion under its Healthcare Sector Research and Development Intervention Scheme (HSRDIS).
The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele who stated this at the Award of Grants to some successful applicants in Abuja said the financed projects consists of 26 pharmaceuticals and 56 medicals across the country.
He said that from over 286 proposals received , 68 proposals have so far been evaluated, out of which five proposals with significant merits valued at N253.54 million were recommended by the committee of experts for financing, expressing optimism that some of the recommended proposals have the potential to enable the development of the Nigerian vaccine for COVID-19.
Commending the committee for doing a remarkable work in the selection process, Emefiele also congratulated the recipients of the award for their efforts in working to develop solutions to some of the nation’s healthcare challenges stressing that “most of our recipients are from the academia, a sector that had lacked funding for research”.
The Governor who reiterated that the review of proposals is still ongoing, urged the committee to provide recommendations for additional award of grants in due course, even as he emphasized the need “for us to move from a consumer-based economy to a more productive economy.
” I will like to urge the recipients of these awards to judiciously utilize the opportunity offered to them by the CBN and strive to achieve the purposes of their research by ensuring that their projects meet the set targets, aims and objectives of supporting the development of vaccines and drugs in Nigeria.
“It is my strong belief that this will offer the average Nigerian access to much needed vaccines and drugs for not just COVID-19, but other communicable or non-communicable diseases. The CBN is committed to the successful implementation of the Scheme, hence we will ensure the review and evaluation of subsequent applications”, he assured.
The Governor who noted that the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic has had an unprecendented effect on the global economy, ” highlighted a truth many of us have always known that a healthy and safe workforce is critical for continued economic growth as well as the stability of our financial system”.
He said “we all witnessed how a public health emergency brought strong economies and developed nations to their knees. In Nigeria, it exposed the fragility of our healthcare system and the urgent need to look inward and build a more robust and sustainable healthcare system.
