Prof Ahidjo Commends Gov Zulum for constructing Borno State TH

By Mohammed Kaka Misau

Borno state Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum has been commended for establishing and constructing a befitting Teaching Hospital for the state.

The Chief Medical Director of University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), Professor Ahmed Ahidjo who made the commendation recently, described as a “necessity”, the building of the tertiary health infrastructure which he noted will address health workforce shortage in the state and by extension, North-Eastern part of Nigeria.

Speaking in his capacity as the newly inaugurated Board Chairman of Sir Kashim Ibrahim University Teaching Hospital, Professor Ahmed Ahidjo observed significant disparity in the number of medical Doctors produced in the Northeast annually compared to its southern counterpart.

“If we look at the case study of South Western Nigeria, every state has a state teaching hospital and they produce more than 100 doctors annually in their state teaching hospitals.

“In the three main federal university teaching hospitals, they produce over 600 doctors annually”, said.

Professor Ahidjo disclosed that in the South West, 1,200 doctors are produced annually, leaving the North East producing not more than 250 doctors annually.

Ahidjo expressed optimisms that the  decision taken by Governor Zulum to actualize the state teaching hospital will impact economically and healthcare-wise.

He added that the decision will change the lives of millions of people in not only Borno state, but neighboring states.

The university of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital CMD while commending Governor Zulum for taking the right decision, stressed that the state teaching hospital is a necessity.

Ahidjo pledged the commitment of the Newly established Borno state Teaching Hospital to prioritize admission towards breeding its people to represent the state anywhere they found themselves.

“You have done so much sir, we have to thank you because building a university hospital is not a small project. I believe by now, it will be very clear as one of the most expensive projects embarked upon by the state government”, the CMD stated.

He further said: “So much resources have gone into that and it’s there to stand time, a legacy project. Thank you for prioritizing the project”.

Professor Ahidjo who also commended the Borno state government for allocating 15 percent of its annual budget, described Healthcare as the backbone of economic and educational development in every society.