The Kano State Governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has declared that the government is building one of the biggest and well equipped cancer treatment center in Nigeria as a way of curbing medical tourism.

He made this Known ,while addressing medical professionals of the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA on Friday who were at the state for a week long quarterly Executive Council Meeting.

The governor described medical tourism as a very serious issue in the country that drained the resources of the country, which needed to be addressed.

“Medical tourism is a very serious issue in Nigeria. We are creating a big market for international communities, for other countries. We spend a lot of money in getting visas, in flying to those countries, in paying for medication, in staying in their countries, in order to get recouped, and also in doing so many other things while we are there.

“So, Nigeria being the most populous nation in Africa, we must reverse the situation,” Ganduje stated.

Explaining his effort to curtail the problem of medical tourism in the country, the governor said: “I am happy to inform you that in our very little way to bridge this technology gap, we purchased equipments that will certainly help us in order to curtail the medical tourism abroad.

“The issue of the prevalence of cancer is getting high in Kano State and we have to arrest the situation. What we have done is to see how best we can approach the system because there is an inherent problem accessibility and affordability.

“Under accessibly, government can provide the equipments, the center itself but how about affordability? That is the question. So in order to reduce medical tourism, those who are rich enough to go abroad and get services, we have planned that they can get such services in Kano State.

“For those who cannot afford, in the management of the center, out of what we get from the so rich, then we will make provision for the poor who will benefit from the system. So, the center will serve the rich and it will serve the less- privileged,” he declared.

“From the information we have, going physically and through the internet, I am happy to inform you that the center will be the biggest in the country,” governor Ganduje declared.

Delivering his own address, the president of the Nigeria Medical Association, Dr. Francis Faduyile praised the Kano state governor for his contributions to the development of the medical sector in the state.

“I am aware that the governor has financed 100 ladies to go out of the country to go and specialize in different aspects of medicine.

”We know that this will facilitate the emergence of soft speciality and the practice of digital medicine in Kano State. He has also given opportunity for anyone that wants to go for speciality in any field of medicine and we thank you for that” the NMA president said. (The Nation)

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