The Federal Government will lead a meeting of health leaders and key stakeholders to address the persistent gap between health policy formulation and implementation in Nigeria, with emphasis on greater coordination across the health system to improve outcomes for citizens.
The initiative will be a major theme of the 2026 National Conference on Health Equity, scheduled to be held from October 13 to 15 at the Nigerian National Merit Award House, Maitama, Abuja.
The conference, organized by OneBarrow International Limited, is themed “From Policy to Impact: Care Coordination as a Central Driver of Health Equity.”
The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, will act as the chief host, while the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Health Services, Hon. Amos Gwamna Magaji and Minister of Education Dr Tunji Alausa are expected to attend as special guests of honour.
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The conference is expected to bring together policymakers, legislators, healthcare regulators, development partners, professional bodies, practitioners, private sector leaders, civil society organisations, patient and community groups, as well as academic institutions, to examine practical approaches to improving healthcare access, quality and continuity of care.
Speaking ahead of the event, Chief Executive Officer of OneBarrow International Limited, Yemi Ajao, said Nigeria’s healthcare challenge was increasingly about translating existing policies and frameworks into coordinated actions and improved outcomes at the point of care.
“Nigeria has developed important health policies and frameworks, but the real test is what happens when those policies reach the people and communities they are designed for,” Ajao said.
He said the conference was designed to close the implementation gap by bringing together stakeholders to focus on coordination, implementation and accountability.
According to him, effective care coordination is essential because the delivery of healthcare involves different professionals, institutions and levels of the healthcare system working together around patients’ needs.
Ajao said the conference will examine how national health policies could be translated into practical implementation strategies at federal, state and local government levels, while strengthening collaboration among doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory scientists, health administrators and other health professionals.
He added that a coordinated health system would reduce fragmentation, strengthen referral pathways, improve communication and promote continuity of care.
“Each health care cadre has a unique and complementary role to play. The patient experiences the health system as a single system, regardless of how many professionals or institutions are involved in their care.
“Therefore, we need systems that support collaboration rather than fragmentation, while strengthening referral pathways, communication and accountability,” he said.
Organizers said a major focus of the conference would be the link between care coordination and health equity, particularly the role of improved coordination in addressing disparities in access to quality health care among underserved populations and communities that face barriers navigating the health system.
Technology, data and citizen engagement will also feature prominently, with participants expected to examine the use of digital feedback mechanisms, transparency, access to information and awareness of patient rights to strengthen accountability in healthcare delivery.
Ajao highlighted the need to empower citizens to actively participate in debates on the quality and responsibility of health services.
“Citizens must understand their rights, have meaningful channels to provide feedback, and be empowered to engage in conversations about the quality of care they receive,” he said.
He added that a health system that listens to citizens would be better positioned to identify gaps, respond to emerging needs and continually improve, and emphasized that demand-side accountability should be part of the broader health equity agenda.
The conference is expected to culminate in a formal post-conference communiqué and a practical implementation roadmap aimed at generating actionable recommendations, tracking commitments, supporting policy implementation and deepening cross-sector collaboration.
Organizers said the goal was to go beyond identifying challenges in the health system to establish practical commitments that could be implemented at different levels of health care delivery.
OneBarrow argued that meaningful health reform required more than policy development, and emphasized that coordinated implementation, accountability, and sustained collaboration were essential to translate reforms into improved health outcomes.
The organization said it hoped participants would leave the conference with clearer priorities, stronger partnerships and practical commitments to building a more inclusive, resilient, coordinated and accountable health system.
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