The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare has declared that ensuring oxygen access at the primary healthcare (PHC) level is fundamental to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and health security across Nigeria.
This position was made clear by the director of hospital services, Dr. Jimoh Salaudeen and the head of patient safety and oxygen at the ministry, Dr. Shetak Gilbert, during a high-level panel at the Africa Primary Health Care Forum (APHCF), held Tuesday in Abuja.
The forum, themed “Reimagining Primary Health Care for Universal Health Coverage and Health Security in Africa,” brought together policymakers, healthcare professionals and stakeholders from across the continent.
Salaudeen lamented that despite substantial investments in oxygen infrastructure (such as oxygen plants and tanks) in many hospitals, a glaring gap remains at the point of care.
“We have seen facilities with oxygen tanks but no functional delivery to the bedside. Oxygen is available, but inaccessible, and people die as a result. That’s the most frustrating thing to witness,” he said.
Describing it as a systemic failure, Salaudeen called for urgent reforms to address logistics gaps and ensure oxygen reaches patients when needed. He proposed integrating oxygen therapy into the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) benefits package to reduce the cost burden on patients.
He also recommended that hospital construction and rehabilitation projects be required by policy to include piped oxygen systems, and that oxygen quality assessments be carried out routinely, especially in facilities using concentrators or cylinders.
Commending Anambra State for banning the purchase of oxygen from unregulated vendors, Salaudeen said the Federal Government is considering a nationwide policy to ensure all oxygen sources are traceable and certified.
In his remarks, Gilbert reinforced the importance of making oxygen therapy a standard component of PHC, especially in rural and underserved communities.
“Oxygen therapy, supported by pulse oximetry, is not a luxury. It is a cornerstone of emergency care. Primary healthcare centres are the first point of contact. If we fail to equip them with oxygen systems, we fail to save lives,” Gilbert stated.
He urged the Federal Government to undertake a national mapping of biomedical engineers and technicians to ensure ongoing maintenance of oxygen infrastructure, which is often rendered useless due to a lack of technical expertise at the facility level.
Gilbert further pushed for a 2026 budget allocation to equip every tertiary hospital in Nigeria with both an oxygen plant and a backup liquid oxygen source, to improve resilience and reduce dependency on a single supplier.
Stakeholders at the forum raised alarm over the country’s overreliance on one liquid oxygen supplier, noting that any disruption in supply would severely impact service delivery nationwide.
They also criticised the 45 per cent import duty levied on medical oxygen cylinders, classified by the Nigeria Customs Service in the same category as cooking gas cylinders. This, they said, is a serious barrier to access since medical oxygen cylinders are not produced locally and should be exempt from such duties.
“This wrong classification has consequences. We cannot compromise patient care over bureaucratic mistakes,” one participant noted.
The forum concluded with a joint commitment from the Federal Ministry of Health and development partners to strengthen oxygen delivery systems across Nigeria, prioritise PHC oxygen access and eliminate logistical and policy bottlenecks that hinder lifesaving care.
The consensus was clear: without consistent and equitable access to oxygen, particularly in PHCs, the country’s dream of achieving UHC and health security will remain out of reach.
