The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, revealed that the Federal Executive Council has approved Medipool, a group purchasing organization, to supply essential healthcare products across Nigeria.

He made this disclosure during a briefing with State House correspondents after the sixth FEC meeting of the year in Monday.

Prof. Pate stated that the Medipool project would be financed through the federal government’s Basic Health Care Provision Fund and later expanded to federal tertiary hospitals. The goal is to secure lower prices for essential healthcare products, thereby enhancing access to healthcare across the country.

“It leverages the government’s monopsony power as a major buyer of healthcare commodities to secure reduced prices and direct those supplies to areas of need,” Pate said.

He further explained that the project will encompass procurement planning, distribution monitoring, supply chain and logistics management, quality assurance, and regulatory compliance. Additionally, it will support local manufacturers and encourage import substitution.

The initiative also incorporates financial management and payment systems, capacity building and training, as well as contingency planning to ensure a reliable supply of essential drugs through a public-private partnership framework.

Pate mentioned that Medipool had been thoroughly reviewed by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission and compared to similar group purchasing organizations in countries like Kenya, South Africa, Singapore, and Saudi Arabia.

“We believe this is a major intervention that will reshape the domestic market by channeling the demand for quality pharmaceuticals in a way that reduces costs, enhances quality, and stimulates local manufacturing,” he said.

The Minister explained that for almost a year and a half, the government had been exploring different strategies to reduce the cost of pharmaceutical products, as many Nigerians continue to face the burden of rising prices.

He also noted that this challenge is not exclusive to Nigeria, citing that even countries like the United States have issued Executive Orders to address the issue of high pharmaceutical costs.

According to him, the Medipool initiative aligns with the presidential drive to unlock the healthcare value chain and supports the Executive Order signed by President Bola Tinubu in June 2024.

“That Executive Order introduced incentives for local manufacturing by removing tariffs on the importation of raw materials, thereby encouraging local production,” Pate said.

Pate added that a key aspect of the Executive Order allows the Ministry to influence the healthcare market by consolidating demand across Nigeria’s health sector and encouraging local suppliers.

He also announced that the Federal Executive Council approved a contract for the procurement and installation of a cardiac catheterization machine at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital in Sokoto, at a cost of N2.3 billion.

He stated that the Medipool initiative aligns with the presidential goal of unlocking the healthcare value chain and supports the Executive Order signed by President Bola Tinubu in June 2024.