FG approves Medipool to distribute essential healthcare products nationwide

• Published On: 13 May 2025 at 16:44

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

He made the announcement during a briefing with State House correspondents following the FEC's sixth meeting of the year on Monday.

Prof. Pate stated that the Medipool project would be funded by the federal government's Basic Health Care Provision Fund and then expanded to federal tertiary hospitals. The goal is to secure lower prices for essential healthcare products, which will improve 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," according to Pate.

He also stated that the project would include procurement planning, distribution monitoring, supply chain and logistics management, quality assurance, and regulatory compliance. Furthermore, it will help local manufacturers and promote import substitution.

The initiative also includes financial management and payment systems, capacity building and training, and contingency planning to ensure a consistent supply of essential drugs via a public-private partnership framework.

Pate stated that Medipool was thoroughly reviewed by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission and compared to similar group purchasing organisations in Kenya, South Africa, Singapore, and Saudi Arabia.

"We believe this is a major intervention that will reshape the domestic market by channelling the demand for quality pharmaceuticals in a way that reduces costs, enhances quality, and stimulates local manufacturing," he told reporters.

The Minister explained that for nearly a year and a half, the government had been looking into different ways to reduce the cost of pharmaceutical products, as many Nigerians continue to bear the burden of rising prices.

He also stated that this challenge is not unique to Nigeria, citing that countries such as the United States have issued Executive Orders to address the issue of high pharmaceutical costs.

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

"That Executive Order introduced incentives for local manufacturing by removing tariffs on the importation of raw materials, thereby encouraging local production," according to Pate.

Pate went on to say that a key aspect of the Executive Order enables 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 had approved a contract for the procurement and installation of a cardiac catheterisation machine at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital in Sokoto for N2.3 billion.

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