Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft and Co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to increase its investment in equitable solutions for the country.
Speaking at the Pan-African Youth Innovation Forum in Lagos, Gates emphasized that Nigerians continue to face the same challenges he highlighted five years ago, including economic instability and security threats. He further revealed that Nigeria’s state and federal governments spend only $10 per person annually on healthcare, in contrast to the $31 average in sub-Saharan Africa.
Gates’s remarks underscore the urgent need for greater financial commitment to improve the healthcare system and address the basic needs of the Nigerian population.
Health Commitments
Bill Gates urged the Tinubu government to make a much bigger financial commitment, focused most of all on improving primary health systems.
In the forum themed: Advancing Africa: Unleashing the Power of Youth in Science and Innovation”, he cited that Nigeria was full of talented people with a lot of potentials, and warned it could be hard to fulfil that potential if they don’t have access to the most basic building blocks of life.
- “It may not surprise you that Nigeria’s state and federal governments only spend the equivalent of $10 on health per person each year, compared to $31 in sub-Saharan Africa as a whole.
- “Leaders need to make a much bigger financial commitment, focused most of all on improving primary health systems.
- “Making sure clinics are well-staffed and supplied, making sure children get the vaccines they need—all of this is absolutely essential to improving health and opportunity and unlocking all of Nigeria’s potential,” he said.
Agriculture Systems and Old Problems
He also noted that he plans to speak with the government about increasing commitments to agriculture and digital financial systems but stated that Nigerians still suffer from many unsolved challenges, adding :
- “The last time I visited Nigeria in 2018, I spoke to government leaders about your country’s potential for growth. This time, I wanted to speak also with you: Nigeria’s next generation of innovators.
- “Ever since I was a teenager, writing computer code on a terminal at my high school, and later at Microsoft, I have loved the feeling of innovating to make something a little better for people or a lot better. I’m sure you know this feeling too. There’s going to be a lot of opportunity for you to continue to make a difference in the world, because of the unprecedented potential of new technologies.
- “However, Nigerians are still facing many of the challenges I talked about five years ago and you have to contend with economic instability and security threats. I have a lot of faith that your generation will persevere and improve lives throughout Nigeria and beyond,” he said.
