Nigeria: Nigeria Is Building a Sustainable Health Financing Future

Nigeria is developing a sustainable health financing model for the future, as the country welcomes US$500 million in support from the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi). This funding will help protect children for the next five years and strengthen domestic financing to ensure immunisation continues beyond 2030. Nigeria assumes greater responsibility for financing health programmes as external assistance becomes less certain due to fiscal pressures, changing priorities, and disruptions to established programmes.

Immunisation is a critical area, with nearly 10 million children born in Nigeria each year, requiring vaccines to be administered according to the national schedule while new vaccines are introduced only when necessary. Gavi's US$500 million support is part of the co-financing model, where participating governments meet a share of vaccine costs.

Nigeria has already co-financed vaccines at a level few other Gavi partners have matched, demonstrating its commitment to immunisation. The Federal Government historically covered most of the co-financing cost, while states provided workforce, facilities, transport, and community outreach for vaccine delivery. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's administration has prioritised immunisation, maternal and child health, and primary healthcare, with health representing about 6% of the 2026 federal budget.

A lasting financing framework should reflect shared responsibility between federal and state levels, as each new vaccine adds a recurrent obligation for the health system to deliver consistently.