Nigeria’s health sector has been allocated N2.1 trillion in the 2026 Federal Budget, yet the level of funding remains significantly below the target set by African leaders under the 2001 Abuja Declaration.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented the N58.18 trillion appropriation bill to the National Assembly in December, outlining allocations to major sectors of the economy.
Among these, Health and Social Welfare received N2.1 trillion, ranking behind Works (N3.4 trillion), Defence (N3.2 trillion) and Education (N2.3 trillion), but ahead of Agriculture and Food Security (N1.4 trillion), Police Affairs (N1.3 trillion), Regional Development (N1.3 trillion), Power (N1.1 trillion) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) (about N1 trillion).
The health allocation, though higher in absolute terms than budgets in previous years, still accounts for a small proportion of the total federal expenditure.
Nigeria has consistently failed to meet the Abuja Declaration target, which commits member states of the African Union to dedicate at least 15 per cent of their annual national budgets to health. In the proposed 2026 budget, the sector’s share is estimated at around 4.2 to 4.3 per cent of total spending, far below the agreed benchmark.
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) criticised the health allocation as insufficient, saying the N2.48 trillion figure equates to roughly N10,400 per citizen for the year, or about N870 per person per month.
Dr Benjamin Egbo, Secretary-General of the NMA, said the funding level was “simply unacceptable and grossly inadequate,” and reiterated that it fell short of the Abuja Declaration target.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, acknowledged efforts to increase the share of health funding.
At recent health forums, he said the government expected the 2026 allocation to move closer to six per cent of the total budget, which would represent the highest proportion recorded in Nigeria’s history. Pate emphasised that prioritising primary healthcare, hospital upgrades, cancer care and vulnerable groups was central to the administration’s strategy.
Health financing advocates have argued that sustained underfunding undermines the capacity of the health system to meet rising demands. Persistent challenges include shortages of equipment and essential medicines, inadequate infrastructure, and high out-of-pocket expenses for citizens.
The sector has also faced cuts in foreign aid, which had supported programmes such as HIV services, immunisation and community health interventions, prompting the government to allocate additional domestic resources in 2025 to mitigate the impact.
Despite incremental increases in nominal budgetary allocations over successive years, Nigeria’s health spending as a share of the total federal budget has remained below six per cent, indicating that health continues to command a smaller slice of national expenditure compared with sectors such as defence, infrastructure and education.
