The federal government has reaffirmed its commitment to health education and prevention strategies, with a strong focus on cancer prevention and maternal health in its 2025 budget.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Salako, said this during a meeting on Thursday in Abuja with a delegation from the Clinton Health Access Initiative, led by its executive vice-president for Infectious Diseases, David Ripin.

Mr Salako highlighted the heavy burden of non-communicable diseases, including cancer, hypertension, and diabetes, stressing that early detection and prevention would be a major focus of the ministry’s budget next year.

“This year in our budget, we are focusing a lot of attention on cancer. A lot of that funding will go into prevention at both primary and secondary levels, including screening and population prevention,” he said.

The minister also disclosed that the government had inaugurated the Maternal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative to tackle high maternal deaths, particularly in high-burden local government areas.

According to him, introducing low-cost technologies like ultrasound scans in maternal care will help drive more women to seek antenatal care, ultimately reducing mortality rates.

He commended CHAI for its partnership, emphasising that collaborations would enhance healthcare outcomes for Nigerians.

Olufunke Fasawe, CHAI’s country director, detailed the organisation’s contributions to improving healthcare access in Nigeria. She revealed that CHAI has supported over 20 cancer treatment centres across the country.

“The organisation worked with the Federal Ministry of Health to cut the cost of chemotherapy by 50 per cent to improve affordability.

HPV screening for cervical cancer has been expanded, with over 57,000 women screened so far.

“CHAI successfully reduced the price of HPV test kits from $20 to $7, making screening more accessible to women,” she stated.

(NAN)