Chief Medical Directors (CMDs) of federal tertiary health institutions have attributed poor funding for medical research to budgetary constraints and repeated cuts during the budgeting process, as the House of Representatives criticised teaching hospitals for allocating less than one per cent of their budgets to research.
Speaking on behalf of the Committee of Chief Medical Directors, the Secretary of the committee and Chief Medical Director of the Jos University Teaching Hospital, Prof. Pokop Bupwatda, told lawmakers that although research is usually captured in hospital budget proposals, the allocation is often removed before final approval.
Bupwatda said limited funding has weakened the capacity of teaching hospitals to carry out meaningful research, despite their statutory mandate as centres of medical innovation and training.
He called for increased funding for the health sector to enable the recruitment of qualified manpower and improved staff welfare, warning that poor conditions of service have worsened the ongoing “japa syndrome” among medical professionals.
According to him, many federal hospitals are critically understaffed, particularly with medical doctors, and even when approvals are granted to recruit, few doctors apply. He added that despite these challenges, existing personnel have continued to provide quality healthcare services and deserve commendation.
Bupwatda also raised concerns over operational challenges facing tertiary health institutions, including the release of only about 30 per cent of the 2025 budget to federal teaching hospitals and medical centres, a development he said has constrained service delivery despite efforts by the House to improve budgetary allocations.
He identified power supply as a major financial burden, noting that hospitals spend huge sums on electricity due to the need for constant power to run critical equipment. According to him, federal hospitals currently operate under Band A electricity tariffs, further increasing costs alongside the expense of running generators.
However, the House of Representatives faulted the CMDs for failing to prioritise research during budget preparations. The Chairman of the House Committee on Health Institutions, Dr Patrick Umoh, said teaching hospitals had allocated less than one per cent of their budgets to research and had not consistently pushed for improved research funding.
Umoh expressed disappointment that many teaching hospitals now operate like general hospitals, rather than research-driven institutions, warning that the neglect of research undermines the country’s health system.
“Teaching hospitals are supposed to be centres of research. You have never raised the issue of lack of funding for research, but you talk more about infrastructure. That makes you part of the problem,” he said.
He added that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the sector’s poor research preparedness, noting that none of the hospitals visited during oversight functions had showcased functional research centres.
