Sixty-five years after Nigeria’s independence, Nigeria’s health system remains under tension, unable to deliver a fair and quality care, according to the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Lagos State Branch.

Speaking on the state of healthcare, the branch chairman, Dr. Sahedd Babajide, said many years of reforms and investments have breakdown to address systemic faults. He noted that persistent issues such as poor financing, infrastructural gaps, and brain drain — popularly known as the “Japa syndrome” — continue to cripple the sector.

Lagos NMA Chairman, Dr. Babajide Saheed, in an interview stated that the sector had remained underdeveloped due to the government’s lack of political will and inadequate investment in healthcare delivery.

Saheed listed poor financing and the “Japa syndrome” as some of the most pressing challenges confronting the sector.

He lamented that both federal and state governments allocate only 4–6% of their budgets to healthcare, far below the 15% commitment made in the 2001 Abuja Declaration. According to him, much of the available funding is misdirected into “elephant projects” with little impact on the masses.

He expressed concern that Nigeria is ill-prepared for public health emergencies, epidemics, or disasters, while medical tourism continues to drain national resources because of a lack of political will to transform domestic healthcare delivery.

Saheed asserted that “integrity, humility, commitment, passion and empathy for the medical profession and health sector should be non-negotiable in appointing leaders,” adding that convening a Lagos State Health Summit would help chart a new course for the sector.

Saheed maintained that “integrity, humility, dedication, passion and empathy for the medical profession and health sector should be non-negotiable in appointing leaders,” adding that convening a Lagos State Health Summit would help chart a new course for the sector.