As one of the measures to mitigate capital flight and bring medical tourism to an end in Nigeria and by extension West Africa, President Muhammadu Buhari has Kickstarted the construction of a world-class hospital in Abuja.
The 500-bed hospital where funding is drawn from Afreximbank, Federal Government of Nigeria Aso Rock Villa; Kings College Hospital, London; University of Winsconsin Teaching Hospital, USA and Christies Hospital, Manchester, will sufficiently handle the healthcare deficit in Nigeria and West Africa.
Announcing the commencement of the project at it groundbreaking which Mr. President attended virtually from Aso Villa, Buhari said:
“It was my pleasure today to virtually preside over the groundbreaking ceremony of the Africa Medical Center of Excellence in Abuja (AMCE), a landmark hospital project that will significantly transform the healthcare sector in West Africa.
The AMCE, the President said is a 500-bed specialist facility, which is a 300 million US dollar investment that will provide services in the areas of oncology, cardiology, and haematology and will seek to address the significant shortage of clinical care options in West Africa.
Disclosing the source of funding in a post from his official Facebook page monitored by 9News Nigeria, President Buhari said the healthcare project is being implemented by the African Export Import Bank – Afreximbank in partnership with the Federal Government of Nigeria Aso Rock Villa; Kings College Hospital, London; University of Winsconsin Teaching Hospital, USA and Christies Hospital, Manchester.
“The success of the AMCE will pave the way for future investments and partnerships in Nigeria’s healthcare sector while raising the local standard of healthcare and providing a blueprint for quality of services required to address Nigeria’s and Africa’s healthcare and economic challenges” Mr. President said.
“In furtherance to need if such healthcare facility in Africa, President Buhari said: “The AMCE indeed represents a return to fundamentals, and the understanding that there is no African development agenda without able-bodied Africans to execute our vision of transformation”.
“The AMCE demonstrates that Afreximbank is not only Africa’s trade finance partner, but also its development partner. Our appreciation goes to the Bank, under the leadership of Prof Benedict Oramah”.
“I would also like to commend the Ministers of Industry, Trade and Investment, Foreign Affairs, Federal Capital Territory and Health for their tireless support to ensuring this project comes to life. This was truly a team effort”, he complimented the team.
