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Tag: Pate

  • Pate, Ooni, others to headline Ondo Diaspora Summit

    Pate, Ooni, others to headline Ondo Diaspora Summit

    The Ondo State Government had wrapped plans to host a summit of its Diaspora people living across the world.

    The event, scheduled to hold virtually, will be hosted on Saturday, December 2, for those in North and South America and Saturday, December 9, 2023 for those in Europe and other parts of the world.

    The Diaspora Summit is an offshoot of the Develop Ondo Conference, which took place in Akure earlier this year.

    The summit would make Ondo indigenes across the globe aware of investment opportunities in the state, thus fostering an avenue for mutual growth and sustained development.

    The event will be hosted by Prince Boye Ologbese, the Commissioner for Regional Integration and Diaspora Engagement in Ondo State, while Governor Rotimi Akeredolu will be the Chief Host, delivering the keynote address.

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    The event will be anchored by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Citizenship and Leadership, Ms. Rinsola Abiola, whose office is also providing technical assistance on the planning of the diaspora summit.

    The event boasts a lineup of notable government officials at the federal and state levels, and highly respected private sector players and traditional rulers.

    The Ooni of Ife, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, who is one of the biggest real estate investors in Ondo State, is billed to speak on the opportunities available in the real estate sector.

    Also to speak at the event are minister of interior,Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who, until his appointment, was a member of the House of Representatives from Ondo State, and Ayodele Olawande, the Minister of State for Youth Development and youngest member of the Federal Executive Council.

    The Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Ali Pate, is also expected to speak on the health sector, a crucial sector which many Ondo diasporans work in.

    Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Director-General of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, is to speak on the importance of sustained diaspora engagement and Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), will speak on investment opportunities available in the tech sector and how Nigerians living abroad can harness these opportunities.

    Development partners such as the UNDP will also be represented at the summit and Seye Oyeleye, Director General of the DAWN Commission, will feature as a panelist.

    Officials of the Ondo State government built to participate in the summit include the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Wale Akinterinwa, the Commissioner for Energy and Mineral resources, Engr. Razaq Obe, the Commissioner for Information, Bamidele Ademola-Olateju, the Director General of the Ondo State Development and Investment Promotion Agency (ONDIPA), Gbenga Badejo, the Ondo State Commissioner for Infrastructure, Lands and Housing, Engr. Raimi Aminu, and the Head of Business Development at ONDIPA, Femi Akarakiri.

    Others include Dr. Banji Awolowo Ajaka, the Commissioner for Health, Professor Adedayo Faduyile OON, Special Adviser on Health, Dr. Ajibayo Adeyeye, Special Adviser on Special Duties, Olumbe Akinkugbe, Chairman of the State Information Technology Development Agency and Peace Odili, Special Assistant to the Governor on Innovation and Partnerships.

    Private sector players billed to feature as panelists at the summit include Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, leading Nigerian tech entrepreneur and Founding Partner at Future Africa, Folajomi Adegbulugbe, Director of Business at RBD Limited, Joel Ogunsola, Founder of Prunedge, and Prince Adebiyi Ayeni, who serves in the management team of leading real estate company, Jide Taiwo & Co.

  • Brain Drain: Pate confirms FG’s plan to engage retired medical practitioners

    Brain Drain: Pate confirms FG’s plan to engage retired medical practitioners

    The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, says the Federal Government has made provisions for retired medical providers in non-administrative positions to be re-engaged on contractual basis.

    He made the disclosure on Saturday in Abuja, while fielding questions from newsmen after his visit to the National Hospital Abuja (NHA).

    According to him, this is to close the human resource gap being experienced in the health sector owing to various reasons such as ‘brain drain’ of clinical manpower.

    “The recent circular essentially provided for medical providers who are in non-administrative positions, that is those who are in clinical positions, to be re-engaged in a contract basis on the same terms as they were so that we do not lose the few that are remaining.

    “That will go a long way in reducing the stress on the remaining health workforce.

    “This hospital, for instance, we have had about 15 anaesthesiologists over the last several years, the last few months alone many have gone.

    “We have six that are remaining, some of them are about to leave and we have to make sure that doesn’t happen.

    “Whatever the reason, if they are available, we should use them to provide the services that Nigerians deserve. That is our focus and that’s what we are going to do,” he said.

    Pate said that in the health sector, human resource is one of the most important and not the building or equipment alone.

    According to him, there are thousands of health workers all over Nigeria who are working very hard, sometimes in difficult circumstances to provide services to Nigerians.

    “We need to support them, we need to improve the circumstances of their work and we need to reduce the stress level.

    “What we have seen is that in many facilities, health workers are leaving, some to leave to go abroad, some moving from one facility to the other because of issues of either work overload or some other circumstances.

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    “Now the replacement of those health workers can be expedited and we will work with other parts of government to ensure that when clinical providers leave their post, that the leadership of our hospitals are able to replace them with similarly qualified health providers.

    “This is so that the burden does not get more on the remaining ones. In addition, for postgraduate trainees we are going to expedite how they get into internships and the circumstance so that they can have productive experiences and learn to practice in the best way possible,” he said.

    The minister said that the government would do everything possible to retain those who are willing to return to service.

    Pate, however said that the issue of replacement of personnel who had gone is not an easy one, given that in the past: some institutions had misused those opportunities.

    “So when they get the waivers to replace or waivers to employ, because of pressure they employ non health professionals and leave the clinical professionals, the nurses, pharmacists, doctors, technicians out of the loop.

    “Then because of pressure they hire others because of the employment situation in the country. So it’s a delicate issue, but we are working towards solving that,” he added.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a circular dated Aug. 30 from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) with reference number HCSF/SPSO/ODD/CND/100/S.1/145, was addressed to the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health.

    The circular was titled: ‘Re: Review of Retirement Age to 65 and 70 years for Health Professionals and Medical/Dental Consultants’.

    The circular was signed by Mr Olufemi Oloruntoba, the Permanent Secretary, Service Policies and Strategies Office, on behalf of the HCSF.

    It cited the proposed rejection in the increase in retirement age for medical and dental consultants and other health professionals.

    It also cited several reasons for the rejection which include that healthcare professionals are leaving the country because of financial considerations and unfavourable working conditions not due to their retirement age.

    “Some state government had already increased the retirement age of medical doctors and other health workers and this has not addressed the spate of brain drain.

    “In spite of efforts by government to encourage health workers, the mass exodus of health workers had not abated,” it said.

    It, however, approved that clinical health workers who have attained the compulsory retirement age or years of service may be offered contract appointments.

    These contract appointments “may be given on the same Salary Grade Level that they retired on, if desired and deserved.”

  • Why health workers must be protected, by Health Minister Pate 

    Why health workers must be protected, by Health Minister Pate 

    The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, has praised health workers for remaining undaunted in the face of industry challenges, kidnapping and other forms of insecurity across the country.

    The minister gave the commendation yesterday while explaining the essence of his Four-Point Agenda for the ministry in a live programme on Channels Television’s  breakfast programme “Sunrise Daily”.

    He listed the areas of improvements that needed to be made in the Health sector. 

    Pate stressed the need to show appreciation to people in the Health sector who work hard, highlighting what they achieved with “limited financing” in the midst of several challenges.

    “…There are many health workers who have been kidnapped in the course of doing their work in rural areas in different parts of the country. Yet, health workers have continued to work hard to deliver services.

     ”Now, are they perfect? No. Is there hope for significant improvement? Yes. That’s why we have articulated these four buckets of things that we will do.”

    Pate’s remarks came nearly two months after the July abduction of Dr. Ekanem Ephraim, a medical doctor at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) in Cross River State, from her home.

    Last November, two other doctors were also kidnapped in the Akampa Local Government Area of the same state.

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    Alongside the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Tunji Alausa, Prof. Pate said he was committed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision to pursue the Four-Point Agenda to improve the overall state of health in Nigeria. 

    The minister said one of the items borders on improving the governance of the Health sector. “It’s not just the Federal Government that has the responsibility for the health of Nigerians. All state governors, all local government authorities have to play their part: invest and ensure that services are delivered and make sure the quality of service is good.

    “It should include everyone; not only the public sector but the private sector also in the conversation. The civil actors should really speak and have a consensus in the country that we want to improve the health of Nigerians,” he said.

    Pate also said the ageing and lifestyle changes were responsible for the rise in non-communicable diseases in the country.

    He said: “Non-communicable diseases are more prominent, partly because we are ageing, partly because of lifestyle changes – that need to be accounted for.

    “Nigeria is going through multiple transitions, all at once. It is undergoing a demographic transition with a population that is youthful. At the same time, it’s ageing, and the structure of our population is changing gradually.”

    “We are having an epidemiological transition whereby the patterns of diseases that we have had for the last several decades are gradually giving way to other new diseases,” he said.

    The minister stressed that changes in nutrition have led to an increase in consumption of processed food, which also has an impact.

    He said: “Nutritionally, even what we eat is gradually changing …from traditional to more processed types of food. So, we have higher incidences of diseases accompanying it.”

    Pate said addressing the issue is not just one bucket but a government approach that includes finance, planning, and health education to improve the well-being of individuals.