[SPECIAL REPORT]
7. Improve maternal and child care, and family planning
8. Educate people on prevailing health problems, and the
methods of preventing and controlling them.
Investors interested in taking advantage of the
opportunities in primary healthcare provision can design
their proposed ventures to meet some of the listed objectives
for fuller support from the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Nigerian Healthcare System
It can be said that Nigeria’s healthcare system has
succeeded in diff erent fronts. Through various government
policies, the Nigerian healthcare system has been developed to
accommodate the wide growing concerns in public healthcare.
The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) is
Nigeria’s health insurance for the majority of citizens. The
healthcare system in the country relies majorly on the success
of this insurance scheme.
Some of the benefi ts that citizens get from the National
Health Insurance Scheme include:
• Out-patient Care
• Maternity Care: This insurance scheme covers up to
4 live maternal births
• Preventative Care: Which includes immunization,
family planning, and health education
• Specialists Consultation
• In-patient care: A citizen can access inpatient care in
a standard ward for up to 15 days per year.
• Preventative Dental Care
These are some of the services that citizens under this
scheme may get from the government. Another good thing
with the Nigerian Healthcare System is that it has freely
covered children under the age of 5 and the disabled. This
is a milestone that the system has achieved. It is also worth
mentioning that the insurance scheme is quite aff ordable and
thus, everyone can be easily covered.
38 • Nigeria-India• 2018
Investment Opportunities
It has been estimated that Nigerians spend about $1
billion on medical tourism per annum. Top medical tourist
destinations include India, Europe, the United States and
the Persian Gulf. There is obviously a ready market of
Nigerians seeking high quality medical care with the requisite
purchasing power.
Although there are over 130 pharmaceutical companies in
Nigeria, only 9 are listed on the stock exchange. Of the total
drug consumption in Nigeria, the indigenous pharmaceuticals
companies are only able to meet about 45 percent of the
demand for drugs. This provides an avenue for import
substitution.
Investment opportunities include:
• Specialist hospitals,
• Diagnostic and Trauma Centers,
• Ambulance Services,
• Mobile Clinics