Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Monday commissioned the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Academy, alongside a modern clinic and dialysis centre named in her honour, describing the projects as “clear evidence of the government’s commitment to improving infrastructure, expanding access to quality healthcare, and investing in the future of the young.”

The commissioning took place in Hadejia, Jigawa State, where Senator Tinubu emphasised that the state-of-the-art clinic would bring “relief and hope to many patients and their families in Hadejia, neighbouring communities, and beyond.”

She added that the academy represents President Tinubu’s dedication to human capital development and educational excellence, which secures “a better tomorrow” for Nigeria’s children.

In addition to the health and education projects, Senator Tinubu also launched the National Food Bank Programme, a deliberate and sustainable response to food insecurity and malnutrition among vulnerable households. The initiative is designed to ensure that children under six, pregnant women, and lactating mothers have access to nutritious food, directly advancing President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on food security and improved health outcomes.

The programme is being implemented through a strategic partnership between the Office of the First Lady, the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, and the Bank of Agriculture. According to Senator Tinubu, the initiative will “build a stronger and more prosperous Nigeria” by safeguarding the health and future of its most vulnerable citizens.

The clinic and dialysis centre were built and fully equipped by FutureMap Foundation and eHealth Africa, in honour of the First Lady’s passion for uplifting underserved communities and vulnerable people.

The President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Academy was established with the support of His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), underscoring the administration’s commitment to innovation and education.

Both projects are designed to work hand in hand. The academy, with its fabrication laboratory and advanced learning facilities, will support the clinic by developing prototypes of body organs — especially kidneys — to aid research, early detection, and prevention of chronic kidney disease. This synergy ensures that education directly fuels healthcare innovation, creating practical solutions to pressing medical challenges.

The First Lady, who expressed deep appreciation to the NITDA Director-General for the honour, re-emphasised the benefits of the academy and the clinic saying: “We are grateful for these honours done to us. Thank you. These projects are clear evidence of the state and federal government’s commitment to improving infrastructure, expanding access to quality healthcare, and investing in education and the future of young people.”

The First Lady further highlighted that the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Academy represents the President’s commitment to human capital development and educational excellence. She added, “By investing in the education of our children today, we are securing a better tomorrow for them.”

While speaking on the National Food Bank Programme, the First Lady described it as “a deliberate and sustainable response to food insecurity and malnutrition among vulnerable households in Nigeria.”

She stressed that the initiative is designed to ensure that children under the age of six, pregnant women, and lactating mothers have access to nutritious food, adding that “this programme aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, advancing food security, improving healthcare outcomes, and building a stronger and more prosperous Nigeria.”

She explained that the programme is being implemented through a strategic partnership between the Office of the First Lady, the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, and the Bank of Agriculture.

Recalling its rollout, she noted that, “We have launched the National Community Food Trust Fund and inaugurated the Board of Trustees in Abuja on 2 April 2026. On 27 April, we conducted the first launch in Borno State for the North-East Zone, and today, by the grace of God, we are launching the second National Community Food Bank here in Jigawa State for the North-West Zone.”

Commending the swift implementation in Borno, she observed that the programme has already enrolled 560 beneficiaries and reached 468 vulnerable children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers in less than two months. “This impressive achievement gives me confidence that Jigawa State will set even higher standards for others to follow,” she declared.

The First Lady emphasised that Jigawa’s agrarian potential makes it a strategic choice for the North-West launch and called for “sustained collaboration to build a transparent, accountable, and efficient food bank system that reaches vulnerable households across Nigeria.”

Earlier in his remarks, the Jigawa State Governor, Mallam Umar A. Namadi, expressed deep appreciation to Senator Oluremi Tinubu and all distinguished guests, noting that their presence in the state for the North-West launch of the National Community Food Bank Programme was “a strong demonstration of solidarity with families who need support and a reaffirmation of our shared duty to protect the vulnerable segment of our population.”

He emphasised that the event served as a reminder of the duty at the heart of public service — ensuring that every child’s health, survival, and development are safeguarded.

Governor Namadi described the initiative as “a timely intervention that will not only bring food resources closer to the people who need them most but will also contribute to better nutrition indices among our children.”

He acknowledged the vision and compassion of the First Lady, stressing that the food bank programme addresses both immediate needs and the long-term well-being of children. He added that the programme provides a platform for nutrition and support to vulnerable households through partnerships with community leaders, farmers, civil society organisations, and the private sector.

Linking the initiative to constitutional responsibility, the Governor cited Section 16, Subsection 2 of Nigeria’s Constitution, which mandates the government to provide “suitable and adequate food for all citizens.”

He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for fulfilling this responsibility through national food security and food bank programmes. He further explained that Jigawa State had already established strong policy foundations through its State Food and Nutrition Policy and State Social Protection Policy, which support targeted nutrition assistance for mothers and children. According to him, the food bank initiative “strongly complements our existing commitments, serving as an effective mechanism for delivering direct benefits to vulnerable families.”

Highlighting progress already made, Governor Namadi pointed to Jigawa’s homegrown nutrition programme implemented across 300 communities, which screened over 240,000 children in 2024 and 382,000 in 2025. He noted that the programme successfully transformed thousands of children from moderate acute malnutrition to healthy status, while 600 women were trained to produce locally made nutritious formulas such as Tom Brown.

He assured that North-West governors would give the food bank programme the support it deserves, pledging to provide storage and distribution facilities, strengthen food centres, and ensure transparency and accountability in reaching vulnerable households. “A nutritious meal for a pregnant woman can safeguard two lives, and nutritious food for a child can support learning and growth,” he said, calling for diligence and compassion from all stakeholders to ensure lasting impact.

The newly commissioned projects in Hadejia, especially the President Bola Ahmed Academy and the Senator Oluremi Tinubu Clinic represent a deliberate effort to integrate advanced technological innovation with critical healthcare delivery. The Academy is structured as a sustainability-oriented institution, designed to transform technical knowledge into practical community solutions.

Its infrastructure includes a fabrication laboratory and maker space for prototyping health wearables and prosthetics, an innovation lab with AI-driven tutoring, and a pitch space for start-ups and research ideas. Complementary spaces such as the atrium, auditorium, and residential hostel ensure that the academy functions not only as a training ground but also as a hub for collaboration, digital upskilling, and community engagement.

The clinic serves as the healthcare counterpart to the academy’s innovation ecosystem. It houses a dedicated dialysis centre to address the region’s burden of chronic kidney disease, alongside a fully equipped operating theatre and maternity rooms for safe maternal care. Every ward is integrated with continuous piped oxygen, ensuring readiness for respiratory emergencies, while the facility’s reliance on renewable energy systems guarantees uninterrupted power for critical medical equipment. This design reflects a strong emphasis on resilience, sustainability, and accessibility, bringing life-saving services closer to underserved communities.

Together, the academy and clinic form a symbiotic model in which education and healthcare reinforce each other. The academy’s fabrication laboratory is expected to provide diagnostic tools and organ prototypes, while the clinic applies these innovations in real-world patient care. This collaboration offers a pathway for early detection and prevention of chronic illnesses, particularly kidney disease, while also strengthening Nigeria’s broader health technology ecosystem. The integration of infrastructure, innovation, and medical service delivery positions Hadejia as a potential model for how technology and healthcare can be combined to address pressing community needs.

It may be recalled that last week, the President launched the establishment of the National Health Technology and Data Analytics Office, a move expected to strengthen Nigeria’s capacity for medical research, data-driven healthcare delivery, and the integration of technology into public health systems.

The event was attended by all seven governors from the North-West geopolitical zone and their spouses; the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Hajiya Mariya Mahmoud Bunkure; the Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad; and the Director-General of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Muyi Aina, who represented the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate. Also present were the NITDA Director-General Kashifu as well as other government functionaries and traditional rulers.

•PHOTO: First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, cuts the ceremonial ribbon to officially commission the Senator Oluremi Tinubu Clinic and Dialysis Centre in Hadejia Local Government Area of Jigawa State. She was joined by the Governor of Jigawa State, Malam Umar A. Namadi, and the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), during the commissioning ceremony.

Update news