By Muhammad Hamisu Abdullahi
Kano State Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with International Budget Partnership (IBP) on how to strengthen performance of health institutions in the state.
The MoU was signed on Friday at EOC Abdullahi Wase Teaching Hospital, Nassarawa GRA, in Kano metropolis.
The signing of MoU on ‘Health Financing Fund Flow Dashboard’ with state Ministry of Health, was performed on behalf of the government by the state Commissioner of Health, Dr. Abubakar Labaran Yusuf, while the Policy and Strategy Lead of IBP, Mr.
Onyekachi Chukwu, who represented the Country Director of IBP, Dr. Olayinka Babalola, signed on behalf of the organization.
In his remarks at the event, the commissioner thanked IBP for their support to the state in health sector.
He noted that IBP had helped the state in regulating the performance of the ministry and its parastatals.
Dr. Yusuf described the signing of the MoU as a milestone to the management of the health sector in the state.
He called on the institutions under his ministry to enhance the initiative by revealing their capital receipts to the IBP for better performance, hoping that a desk officer would be appointed to manage such receipts for more transparency and accountability.
After signing the document, the representative of the Country Director of IBP, Mr. Chukwu, said they supported the state government in developing the dashboard for easy tracking of the performance of the health institutions under the ministry.
Demonstrating the dashboard features at the event, IBP Consultant, Mr. Stanley Achonu, who made a short presentation on it, said it allowed for easy navigation on the performance of the agencies under the health ministry.
Speaking, the Representative of Gates Foundation in the state, Dr. Shamsuddeen Sani, disclosed that the state had challenges around funding the healthcare sector.
Dr. Sani said that with the signing of the MoU, such gaps would be closed, as it would enable the ministry know the exact funds coming to the state through the health sector.
He said it would also enable the state know the resources coming into Primary Health Care in the annual budget with a view to solving the challenges militating against the ministry and its parastatals.
The event was attended by dignitaries to include Representative of IBP in Kano, Malam Jibrin Ali Giginyu; the Director General of the state Primary Health Care Management Board (KNPHCMB), Prof. Salisu Ahmad and the Executive Secretary of the state Health Trust Fund (KHETFUND), Dr. Fatima Zahradeen among others.
