FG Approves Financing Plan To Electrify Health Facilities, Targets 30% Coverage By 2027

The Federal Government on Tuesday approved a financing framework and institutional reforms to accelerate the electrification of health facilities nationwide, with a target of providing reliable 24-hour electricity to at least 30 per cent of Nigeria’s health facilities by the end of 2027.

The approval was granted at the third meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee of the Nigeria Power for Health Initiative, a presidential programme jointly coordinated by the Federal Ministries of Health and Power.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, disclosed the outcomes of the meeting.

According to him, the committee endorsed new governance structures, approved a facility energy management framework, and cleared eight private sector proposals for further engagement. The proposals emerged from about 70 submissions received during the National Healthcare Electrification Investor Matchmaking Week held in Lagos.

Salako said the decisions marked a major step toward delivering uninterrupted electricity to hospitals through public-private partnerships.

“This is progress with respect to the Nigeria Power for Health Initiative that was established by Mr President after the National Dialogue in December 2025,” he said.

The committee also approved a financing framework to mobilise investments for healthcare electrification, and a facility energy management framework to ensure hospitals establish systems to manage energy infrastructure sustainably.

Energy Management Teams have already been constituted in federal tertiary hospitals, while state governments have been encouraged to set up similar structures.

*Institutionalisation And Technology Plan*

Salako announced that the initiative would now be institutionalised through dedicated budgetary provisions and the establishment of a full-time Project Coordination Unit.

“Our goal, as approved by Mr President, is to ensure that we deliver reliable energy access to at least 30 per cent of Nigeria’s health facilities by the end of 2027 using public-private partnerships that prioritise energy-as-a-service delivery models,” he said.

He added that different energy technologies would be deployed based on each facility’s needs.

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Some facilities will use mini-grids, others may adopt gas-powered systems or other solutions. We will deploy whatever technology best suits each location.”

Speaking on progress in the last eight months, Salako said governance structures had largely been put in place while electrification projects continued across primary, secondary and tertiary facilities.

“The REA alone has energised about 100 hospitals nationwide with containerised solar power systems,” he said.

On ending power outages in tertiary hospitals, the minister said the initiative was part of broader electricity sector reforms.

“What Mr President has done by democratising the energy provision space has created opportunities like this. We are confident that Nigeria will gradually eliminate blackouts,” he stated.

The Minister for Power, Joseph Tegbe, described the initiative as one of the Tinubu administration’s flagship programmes, saying the focus would now shift to project delivery.

“Enough of groundbreaking and media events. We want to start commissioning projects. We want Nigerians to see teaching hospitals, state hospitals and primary healthcare centres that have been fully energised,” Tegbe said.

He stressed that dependable electricity would improve patient care and end the reliance on generators during emergencies.

“I want us to stop this idea of rushing generators to hospitals during emergencies. That should become a thing of the past. Whatever resources are required, we will continue to prioritise this initiative while ensuring value for money.”

The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Power, Mahmuda Mamman, said uninterrupted electricity was critical for medical equipment, vaccine storage, laboratories and emergency response.

Poor electricity supply has forced many public hospitals to rely heavily on diesel generators to power theatres, ICUs, laboratories, blood banks, oxygen plants and vaccine cold-chain systems. Rising energy costs have also pushed some tertiary hospitals to spend hundreds of millions of naira annually on diesel.

President Tinubu approved the Nigeria Power for Health Initiative in December 2025 following the National Power for Health Dialogue.

The programme adopts a public-private partnership model to deploy solar mini-grids, gas-powered systems and other renewable technologies. The government says it will also establish a national database of healthcare electrification projects to improve coordination and attract private investment.