FCMB Launches N20 Billion Intervention
First City Monument Bank has unveiled a N20 billion Healthcare Fund to address the critical financing gap in Nigeria's private health sector. The fund is designed to provide affordable, long-term capital for hospitals, clinics, diagnostic centres, pharmaceutical companies, and other businesses across the healthcare value chain.
Speaking at the inaugural FCMB Healthcare Summit in Lagos, FCMB Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Yemisi Edun emphasized that building a strong healthcare system requires patient and accessible capital. The remarks, delivered by Executive Director of Corporate Services and Service Management Felicia Obozuwa, highlighted that the bank will provide financing for infrastructure expansion, medical equipment, working capital, and technology adoption.
The summit, themed "Financing Growth: Unlocking Opportunity, Building the Future of Healthcare," brought together policymakers, healthcare providers, investors, and development partners to discuss sustainable funding models for the sector.
Government Funding and Local Production Targets
The push for private capital aligns with ongoing public sector investments. Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare Iziaq Salako revealed that the government has disbursed more than N339 billion through the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund over the past 12 years.
Out of this total, N235 billion was disbursed in the last three years under the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative. Additionally, N32.9 billion was recently allocated to support more than 8,300 primary healthcare centres, with the government targeting approximately 13,000 facilities nationwide.
Salako also outlined the government's industrial ambitions. Under the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain, Nigeria aims to achieve 70% local production of medicines and medical devices by 2030, while addressing power constraints and creating long-term procurement opportunities for local manufacturers.
Addressing the Investment Readiness Gap
Despite the availability of funds, private operators continue to face significant barriers to accessing capital. Njide Ndili, President of the Healthcare Federation of Nigeria, noted that affordable financing remains a major constraint for private healthcare small and medium-sized enterprises.
To bridge this gap, HFN is partnering with FCMB to develop a framework for pre-qualifying eligible healthcare facilities. This framework will help businesses strengthen their governance, financial reporting, management capacity, and growth plans before accessing the N20 billion fund.
HFN, which represents more than 400 member organisations and 4,000 professionals, will leverage its experience with the PharmAccess Medical Credit Fund to ensure that healthcare businesses combine technical support with quality standards to become bankable.
