The Senate on Wednesday passed for third reading two bills seeking to establish two new Federal University Teaching Hospitals in Kaduna and Benue States, in a move aimed at boosting medical training and expanding healthcare delivery in the country.
The bills are the Federal University of Applied Sciences Teaching Hospital, Kachia, Kaduna State (SB 1058), and the Federal University of Health Sciences Teaching Hospital, Otukpo, Benue State (SB 908).
Their passage followed the presentation of a report by the Senate Committee on Health led by Senator Abdul Ningi and the subsequent consideration of the bills clause by clause where lawmakers approved the bills.
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio who presided over the plenary, said the establishment of the hospitals would strengthen Nigeria’s health manpower base and provide tertiary healthcare services to underserved communities in the North-Central and North-West regions.
Presenting the committee’s report, members of the Health Committee noted that the proposed hospitals would serve as training centres for medical students and other health professionals from the newly established federal universities in Kachia and Otukpo.
“This is a critical intervention for our healthcare system. These teaching hospitals will not only provide quality medical care to our people but also train the doctors, nurses and allied health professionals Nigeria urgently needs,” the committee’s report stated.
Lawmakers who contributed during deliberations described the passage as a landmark step towards bridging the gap in medical education infrastructure.
They argued that with the increasing number of medical graduates and the rising demand for specialist care, the country requires more well-equipped teaching hospitals to curb medical tourism and brain drain.
“We cannot continue to train doctors without adequate clinical facilities. The establishment of these hospitals in Kachia and Otukpo will decongest existing teaching hospitals and bring specialist care closer to the grassroots,” a senator said during the debate.
After the third reading, the Senate resolved that the bills be transmitted to the House of Representatives for concurrence and subsequently to the President for assent.
