I was honoured to join the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Nigeria, the European Union in Nigeria, and the World Health Organization, Nigeria, at the official launch of the EU Support to Public Health Institutes in Nigeria yesterday in Abuja.

My sincere appreciation to Dr Pavel Ursu, WHO Representative to Nigeria, for the invitation and for his leadership in advancing WHO-Nigeria cooperation across domestic health financing, primary health care, emergency preparedness, and partnerships for equitable access. To Ambassador Gautier Mignot and the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, thank you for an investment that recognises Nigeria as a strategic partner within a continental health architecture.

EU-SPIN strengthens national and subnational public health institutes to deliver Essential Public Health Functions across governance and multisectoral coordination, workforce development, institutional strengthening, and digital public health transformation. The launch positioned the programme within the broader AU-EU Partnership for Health, one of five thematic hubs under the Team Europe Global Gateway framework.

The Wellbeing Foundation Africa welcomes this agenda, and through the Wellbeing Africa Institute for Research and Development, contributes evidence-based policy analysis, research capacity building, and regional collaboration that enables national public health institutes to coordinate effectively, share knowledge across borders, and translate technical capacity into measurable health outcomes for vulnerable populations.

Civil society bridges the distance between national policy commitments and frontline delivery, amplifies voices excluded from formal governance structures, and holds institutions accountable to the communities they exist to serve. Public health is built through institutions before it is delivered through services. May this partnership deliver the institutional discipline Nigeria deserves.

 

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