Northern Pulse: Kaduna Govt begins screening of 2.0 cohort for National Health Fellows Programme

By Stella Kabruk

The Kaduna State Ministry of Health has begun a five-day screening exercise for the second cohort of the National Health Fellows Programme.

Speaking at the screening, the Commissioner for Health, Umma Ahmed, said the National Health Fellows Programme (NHF) is a Presidential initiative aimed at developing a new generation of leaders for Nigeria’s health sector.

She said the essence of the NHF screening is to select a new cohort of National Health Fellows strictly based on merit, and to competitively evaluate qualified young professionals for the NHF 2.0 cohort.

Other objectives, she added, include ensuring fairness, transparency, and credibility throughout the recruitment process; demonstrating national and state-level commitment to youth leadership development in the health sector; and strengthening public trust in health sector reforms and youth development efforts.

According to her, the NHF operates under the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare’s Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp), in partnership with State Ministries of Health and development partners.

She said the initiative helps to equip young professionals with hands-on leadership and management experience within primary health care facilities across all 774 local government areas in the 36 states and the FCT.

“We are recruiting 23 fellows. Each LGA will host one Health Fellow, strengthening local capacity for health system reform and improved service delivery nationwide,” she said.

She added that the initiative is one the state is proud of because it identifies with youths.

She explained that the youths will work in communities to identify health challenges, gather information, and collect data.

The commissioner added that the data collected would inform policy decisions.

“These youths will go back to the communities and be mentored on how to generate information. They will work with health workers in the local government areas, identify challenges, and report back.

“The information they report will assist the state ministry and the Federal Ministry of Health in taking decisions and implementing policies.

“We had the first cohort last year and enjoyed working with them because they were practical in the communities. We hope the second cohort will also take advantage of the opportunity to improve health outcomes in the state,” she said.

She added that the committee had been able to assess and track whether applicants’ indigenisation certificates were fake or authentic, and had improved in verifying them.

She said the ministry also intended to sensitise applicants during the application process on the required documentation.

She commended the Coordinating Minister of Health for initiating the programme, noting that the sector needed young people to understand the health system and appreciate ongoing reforms.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Kaduna State screening exercise for the National Health Fellows Programme is being led by the representative of the State Coordinator, Public Health Officer, WHO, Dr. Fureratu Zakari. (NAN)