Nigeria, Israel partner on healthcare delivery

From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja

The Federal Government and the State of Israel have agreed to provide specialised training for Nigerian healthcare professionals and upgrade the country’s healthcare infrastructure.

Speaking during a Symposium on Hepato Pancreato Biliary Surgery organised by the State of Israel, in collaboration with the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Health, the Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, said when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared his Renewed Hope Agenda and health was a critical element of it, he met with the Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr. Salma Ibrahim Anas, to see what Israel could do in some specialised areas.

Freeman added that one of the areas was the pancreatic area, saying that it has been a real pleasure to bring two leading surgeons from Israel who carried out four very complex surgeries.

He further said the surgeries were carried out alongside Nigerian doctors in a bid to train them and to build capacity in Nigeria.

“We hope it will be the beginning of a long term relationship, a long term partnership where we can help Nigeria build capacity because Israel’s vision is that Nigeria should become a centre of excellence, that Nigeria should be a place where people come to for medical tourism and Israel is committed to working with Nigeria, to work with President Tinubu to increase capacity here,” Freeman said.

The Israeli envoy further said the State of Israel would do as many different things as it can with Nigeria in that area. Freeman also disclosed that in the future, Israel and Nigeria would focus on malaria, eye sight and the doctors who carried out the pancreas and liver operations, planned to return to Nigeria in the future to keep expanding and keep capacity building.

Also speaking, Anas said the partnership with the State of  Israel fully aligned with President Tinubu’s vision of achieving universal healthcare coverage for all Nigerians.

Anas also emphasised on the importance of early disease detection, citing the challenges posed by late presentations.

“The partnership has already yielded positive results, with a recent medical intervention at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Abuja, demonstrating the effectiveness of collaborative efforts,” Anas said.