Cross River Government has made enrolment in the state Health Insurance Scheme compulsory for all civil and public servants in the state.

The Head of Service, Bassey Okon, announced this in a circular dated Sept.

According to the circular in Calabar, at the weekend, the directive takes immediate effect.

Okon stated that the policy was meant to ensure that all the civil and public servants had access to affordable, quality, and timely healthcare services, while strengthening the welfare and productivity of the state workforce.

He directed all the civil and public servants to enroll in the scheme and comply with the registration and documentation requirements of the agency.

The circular also introduced a mandatory requirement for officers to attach valid health insurance enrolment cards to official correspondences relating to personnel matters.

“Correspondences concerning promotion, confirmation of appointment, loan applications, study leave, training or sponsorship, transfer or secondment, as well as other personnel-related requests or benefits, would not be processed without the attachment of a valid health insurance enrolment card,” it stated.

To facilitate the enrolment process, the government established enrolment points at the Office of the Head of Service, New Secretariat, Calabar, and the Ministry of Health, Old Secretariat, Calabar.

Okon directed all Heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to ensure that officers under their supervision were duly informed about the circular and made to comply with the enrolment requirement without delay.

He also urged concerned officers to take advantage of the designated enrolment points for guidance and assistance and to complete their enrolment as required.

He further directed all the heads of the MDAs to bring the contents of the circular to the attention of all civil and public servants under their supervision. (NAN)

Stakeholders in the health, manufacturing, regulatory and development sectors have called for urgent policy and regulatory reforms to make menstrual products more affordable and accessible to millions of Nigerian women and girls battling period poverty.

The call was made at the Nigeria Menstrual Health Forum: “Driving Standards and Policy Reform for Affordable Menstrual Products,”organised in Lagos by the United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, in collaboration with the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, SON, and the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, with funding from the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund, SHF.

The two-day forum brought together government agencies, manufacturers, private sector players, civil society organisations and development partners to address affordability, quality standards, local production and market access for menstrual products.

An estimated 37 million women and girls in Nigeria are affected by period poverty, while 24 per cent of schoolgirls regularly miss classes because of inadequate menstrual materials and poor water, sanitation and hygiene facilities.

The situation has been worsened by inflation, with the price of menstrual pads rising from about N200–N400 three years ago to N500–N750 or more, forcing some women and girls to resort to unsafe alternatives, including old cloth, mattress foam and reused sanitary pads.

Speaking at the forum, UNFPA Gender and Adolescent Unit representative, Dr Zubaida Abubakar, said the focus was not merely on increasing access to menstrual products but ensuring that products available in the market were affordable, safe and of good quality.

“This forum marks a turning point in Nigeria’s menstrual health landscape. By driving standards and policy reform, we aim to dismantle barriers to access, ensure dignity for women and girls, and unlock opportunities for education, health, and empowerment,” Abubakar said.

She explained that the objective was to create an environment where local manufacturers could produce menstrual commodities at lower costs rather than relying mainly on government subsidies.

“We cannot expect the government alone to be responsible for subsidising menstrual commodities. What we want to do is make sure that the manufacturers are able to produce them at a lower cost,” she said.

According to her, the goal was to “flood the market with affordable, quality-standard” products capable of reaching women and girls across the country.

The forum also focused on strengthening standards and certification to prevent substandard menstrual products from entering the Nigerian market.

Head, National Product Certification Department, SON, Phebean Arumemi, said standards could help manufacturers reduce production costs by minimising waste and improving production processes.

“One of the key benefits from standards is cost management,” Arumemi said, stressing that the agency was working with manufacturers, particularly micro, small and medium enterprises, MSMEs, to improve their capacity to meet quality requirements.

She said SON’s priority was not to shut down factories but to provide mentorship and compliance support.

“Our first priority is not to close down factories. It is mentorship support to help them escalate from where they are now,” she said.

Also speaking, Elisha Sule of SHF said greater coordination among regulators, manufacturers and financiers was critical to developing a sustainable menstrual health market.

“The businesses are there, the regulators are there, NAFDAC is there, SON is there. We need someone to bring us all together to keep talking. And so, without that coordination, we’re not going to be able to move forward,” Sule said.

He said many women-led businesses in the sector required capacity building and access to finance to scale production, urging stronger collaboration with financial institutions, including the Development Bank of Nigeria, DBN.

Meanwhile, investment adviser Kunle Awolowo of ONYX Investment Advisory Limited, advocated import substitution to reduce production costs, noting that up to 90 per cent of inputs used by some local manufacturers were imported.

He also suggested smaller product packages to make menstrual products more affordable to low-income consumers.

The forum is part of the SHF-funded initiative, Menstrual Health & Hygiene: Unlocking Women’s Power, implemented across six African countries.

Nigeria has adopted the Africa Regional Standard for menstrual products and is pursuing ISO certification, while it has also developed a National Policy on Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management, 2025–2030.

The stakeholders said ending period poverty would not only restore dignity but also improve health, school attendance, gender equality and women’s economic participation.(PUNCH)

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, has called for increased investment in radiopharmaceutical therapy to strengthen cancer care and advance precision medicine in Nigeria.

Salako made the call at the International Symposium on Radiopharmaceutical Therapy (ISRT) event held on Friday in Lagos.

The World Association of Radiopharmaceutical and Molecular Therapy (WARMTH), International Centers for Precision Oncology Foundation and Chris Oyakhilome Loveworld Medical Centre, organised the two- day event.

The symposium targets better, more accurate and personalised cancer diagnosis and treatment for people in Africa.

Represented by Dr David Oladele, Deputy Director, Research, Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Yaba, Salako commended the organisers and stakeholders for addressing Nigeria’s growing cancer burden.

He described radiopharmaceutical therapy as an important frontier in modern medicine, combining nuclear medicine, molecular imaging, pharmaceutical sciences, oncology and precision medicine for targeted cancer treatment.

The minister said the Federal Government remained committed to strengthening the health system under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the Health Sector Reform Investment Initiative.

He urged participants to deepen collaboration between Nigerian and international institutions, promote technology transfer, strengthen capacity development and develop partnerships to make radiopharmaceutical therapy more accessible.

Salako expressed hope that the symposium would produce actionable recommendations and partnerships capable of strengthening cancer care and advancing precision medicine across Nigeria.

He congratulated the organisers and wished participants fruitful deliberations and a successful symposium.

Delivering the opening remarks, Dr Deola Philips, Executive Minister, Ministry of Healing and Social Services and Chairman, Loveworld Medical Centre, commended Pastor Chris Oyakhilome for his compassion toward the sick.

Philips said Oyakhilome’s compassion had inspired healthcare initiatives, including trauma care, blood donation, volunteer medical services and community clinics.

She said ISRT promoted precise, personalised cancer care, strengthened local expertise and demonstrated Africa’s capacity to develop and deliver advanced diagnostics and targeted treatments to international standards.

President-elect of WARMTH, ISRT Scientific Chair and Director of Operations, Loveworld Medical Centre, Dr Masha Maharaj, said collaboration, education and research were crucial to advancing nuclear medicine globally.

She said ISRT symposiums provided practical workshops for young scientists and emerging departments to gain knowledge and confidence, exchange ideas and collaborate with international experts.

She said research showed that theranostics could improve outcomes for patients with advanced prostate cancer, adding that Nigeria had begun actinium treatments for breast cancer, sarcoma and lung cancer.

In a video displayed on a slide, Dr Savvas Frangeras, Nuclear Physician, Cyprus, and President, World Federation of Nuclear Medicine, praised Maharaj for fostering cooperation between the organisations.

Frangeras said the symposium supported efforts by international bodies to strengthen nuclear medicine in Africa and develop sustainable strategies for addressing the continent’s challenges.

He expressed hope that the Nigerian Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging would join the initiative, wishing participants a successful and productive symposium.

Prof. Richard Baum, a pioneer in molecular imaging, theranostics and radiopharmaceutical therapy, said the professional environment provided ideal conditions for learning, exchange and international friendships.

Baum commended Maharaj and her team for creating a platform that advanced radiopharmaceutical therapy, precision oncology, collaboration and global partnerships for patients in Africa and beyond.

Dr Emeka Eze, Medical Director, Loveworld, and Chairman, ISRT 2026, said precision oncology offered targeted cancer care, potentially reducing the side effects of conventional chemotherapy while improving diagnosis and treatment outcomes.

Eze said radiopharmaceuticals targeted diseased cells and helped detect cancers and other conditions, describing nuclear medicine technology at Loveworld Medical Centre as a major treatment breakthrough.

He commended the Nigerian government for supporting nuclear medicine and assured cancer patients of scientifically proven treatment alternatives, although he acknowledged that advanced medical care remained expensive.

Dr Anthony Oseghale, Director of Health Services, Ministry of Healing Health and Social Services, Loveworld Nation, Oyakhilome for his compassion and global healthcare interventions.

Oseghale said ISRT 2026 reflected Loveworld’s commitment to precision medicine, while Vision 10,000 provided free eye surgeries, eyeglasses, medication and specialist consultations, reaching thousands of people.

He said the Volunteer Medical Corps comprised millions of health professionals and students providing free healthcare, while Community Clinics offered free services, medications and consumables across communities.

According to him, Loveworld Medical Centre had expanded access to advanced healthcare, with plans for a community clinic in Kenya, enabling patients to receive specialised treatment without travelling abroad.(NAN)