According to him, the scheme was established six years ago to provide quality basic health care services to all Nigerians especially the poor, saying that only a few had benefited from it.

A statement by the Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Willie Bassey, quoted the SGF as speaking during the inauguration of the 15-man Committee on Basic Health Care Provision Fund in Abuja on Tuesday.

Mustapha was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs Office, Mr David Adejo.

The statement was titled ‘FG set to reform health sector, inaugurates committee.’

It partly read, “Despite the budgetary allocation for the operationalisation of the BHCPF, many Nigerians have not benefitted from it since six years of its establishment. The Joint Working Committee was constituted to provide an effective stakeholders’ coordination mechanism towards the actualisation of the Fund. Part of the terms of reference for members of the committee is to bring stakeholders up to speed on the status of the Fund, to proffer recommendations as action plans to fast track progress of implementation and to establish the need for the stakeholder coordination framework and other mechanisms to sustain momentum.”

Speaking earlier, the Director-General of the Bureau for Public Service Reforms, Mr Dasuki Arabi, said the purpose of establishing the BHCPF was to bring relief to Nigerians who have never experienced proper basic healthcare.

He added that it is in a bid to revive the Fund that the BPSR, with the support of development partners, Civil Society Organisations and Non- Governmental Organisations, undertook an analysis of the current situation of the Fund to uncover the underlying issues and seek a way forward for speedy implementation.