LAGOS – Dr Jide Idris, the immediate-past Lagos State Commissioner for Health on Friday said that more investment in health research would improve the country’s poor health indices and drive development in general.
Idris told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that medical research was one major tool to fight diseases as well as make better policies for general development of a country.
He said that inadequate funding of research on health matters had affected the quality of data used for planning and development in the sector.
According to him, we have the capacity to conduct research but there is no interest and we lack funding which is a major barrier to successful research which is an expensive venture.
“There is a need for us to invest seriously on our public health institutions, and one way of doing that is through research.
“No country can make any progress, especially in the health sector without research.
“That is the only base where new things are discovered, new things are modified, findings are made and that will help us in making policies,’’ he said.
Idris urged the Federal Government to create an enabling environment for private investors to fund and engage in health research.
“In most countries abroad, it is not the government that fund research, it is the private sector. The government can only create the avenue for it.
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“In Lagos State, we set up a research fund as a way to stimulate and encourage private participation. I urge the Federal Government to work in this direction.
“We must invest in research works, we have a lot of scientists in this country whose works are not even known and it is only the government that can actually publicise these.
“If you recollect, during Ebola period, the laboratory we used is owned by a Nigerian. If you also recollect, in the past, we have to send samples abroad for confirmation.
“During the Ebola period, we refused to send samples abroad because we knew the capability of the scientists we have and that is what helped us in increasing the speed at which diagnosis was made.
“So, we have the potential in this country, we have the people; all they need is encouragement and funding,’’ Idris said. (NAN)
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