The Network for Health and Development (NHED) on Wednesday called for enhanced accountability and sustained funding in safeguarding public health in Kano state.
NHED made during a media briefing on health security financing accountability in Kano.
The briefing, which took place at R&K Guest House, Nassarawa GRA, highlighted the importance of building resilient systems to respond to health threats such as disease outbreaks, environmental hazards, among others.
The focus of the conversation was the Health Security Accountability Framework (HSAF), a structured tool designed to track, coordinate, and improve health financing and preparedness across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
Though Kano has made commendable strides by signing the Health Security Bill into law on February 18, 2025, challenges around data availability, weak monitoring systems, and poor coordination still hamper effective implementation.
Speaking at the briefing, Dr. Jerome Mafeni, NHED’s Senior Technical Advisor, acknowledged the progress made so far, including the state’s early adoption of the HSAF. However, he expressed concern over the lack of critical data needed to operationalize the framework.
“The framework was designed to track financial and other health security indicators, but during our recent validation meeting, we discovered it remained largely unpopulated.
“This is not merely a technical gap, it’s an accountability crisis. Without data, the framework is just an empty shell,” Dr. Mafeni said.
Despite this setback, he noted that the state has reconstituted a task force to populate the framework and kick-start implementation.
Dr. Mafeni called on the media to maintain pressure on the government to ensure that financial commitments to health security are honored and tracked.
“Kano is the first Nigerian state to sign off on this bill and the framework. That leadership must be matched with action. We count on journalists to ask hard questions and bring the public into the accountability process,” he added.
Oluwatoyin Adeomi, NHED Project Officer, outlined several systemic obstacles hindering effective health security responses in Kano.
These include unpredictable funding, fragmented roles across agencies, poor coordination, and weak monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.
According to her, the HSAF provides a path to address these gaps through coordinated tracking of resource allocations and health threat responses.
“The framework links resource allocation to performance and ensures that all actors, government, CSOs, and the media, can see and use the same data.
“The objectives of the HSAF include enabling data-driven decision-making, enhancing inter-agency coordination, and aligning Kano’s health responses with national and global standards. Key pillars of the framework include coordination, data use, investment tracking, and progress measurement,” she explained.
Salisu Yusuf, a representative of the Civil Society Coalition on Health in Kano, emphasized the need for active civic and media engagement.
He pointed out that despite passing the bill and establishing the Kano Centre for Disease Control (Kano CDC), real progress depends on regular data publication and budget transparency.
“Health security is not just about drafting laws. It’s about ensuring those laws translate into services. Budget releases must be monitored quarterly. If nothing is done from January to June, it’s just paper performance.
“The media must push for accountability beyond this briefing,” Yusuf said.
He stressed that civil society and media have a shared responsibility to ensure that outbreak preparedness is not theoretical, but practical and measurable.
Tessy Nongo Maina, NHED’s Communications Lead, lamented that progress on the framework had stalled until NHED re-engaged the state government.
She urged the media to move beyond event-based reporting and embed health security in everyday public discourse.
“Most stories on health security only come out when there’s a briefing. But what happens after we leave?” she questioned.
She emphasized that consistent reporting can make this framework come alive.
She called on journalists to view themselves as part of the accountability process, not just as observers, but as agents who can amplify the right to health and transparency.
