The statement said the assurance was reiterated during a high-level meeting led by the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Ndume, between the top management of the ministry and the leadership of NARD, following the association’s recent agitations over welfare and professional concerns.

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The federal government yesterday said it would release N11.995billion within 72 hours for the payment of outstanding arrears, including accoutrement allowance, to doctors and other health workers across the country.

This was contained in a press statement issued by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in Abuja and signed by the Deputy Director and Head, Information and Public Relations, Alaba Balogun.

According to the ministry, the move is part of ongoing efforts to resolve welfare concerns raised by the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) and other unions.

The statement said the assurance was reiterated during a high-level meeting led by the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Salako, between the top management of the ministry and the leadership of NARD, following the association’s recent agitations over welfare and professional concerns.

The assurance comes amid a nationwide strike  that began yesterday, involving about 11,000 resident doctors across 91 healthcare facilities.

The striking doctors are protesting unpaid arrears, delays in allowances, and other welfare-related issues despite earlier assurances from the government.

The President of the NARD, Dr. Muhammad Suleiman, had on Monday said the federal government owes doctors and other health workers across the country an estimated N38billion in accumulated allowances.

Meanwhile, the statement noted that the government remains committed to ensuring that the welfare, motivation, and stability of the nation’s health workforce serve as the foundation of all health policies and programmes.

“In collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare commenced the payment of seven months’ arrears of the 25–35 per cent upward review of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure and the Consolidated Health Salary Structure to all categories of health workers, with N10bn paid in August 2025.

“Following the approval of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for these arrears owed to health workers, including members of NARD, to be paid expeditiously, as of Thursday, October 30, another sum of N21.3bn has been moved to the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System account, and payment has commenced.

“In addition, the sum of N11.995bn is being processed for release within 72 hours to pay other arrears, including accoutrement allowance. All these payments are being enjoyed by members of NARD in accordance with the salary structure in the health sector. Additionally, the Federal Government has released N10.6bn as of September 2025 as full payment for the 2025 Medical Residency Training Fund, paid exclusively to resident doctors nationwide,” it stated.

To address the strain caused by brain drain and prolonged working hours, the ministry disclosed that the federal government had granted special waivers for the massive recruitment of healthcare professionals across federal tertiary institutions.

It stated that over 20,000 health workers, including doctors, nurses, and allied professionals, were recruited across 58 federal health institutions in 2024, while recruitment for 2025 is ongoing, with 15,000 health workers already approved for employment.

According to the statement, the recruitment drive is part of a broader strategy to ensure that Nigeria’s health facilities are adequately staffed, safe, and equipped to deliver quality care to citizens.

It confirmed that, “The collective bargaining discussions are ongoing with the Nigerian Medical Association, where NARD is an affiliate, the Joint Health Sector Unions, and the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives.

“To deepen dialogue and proffer solutions to controversial issues that arose in the course of the CBA, the ministry has engaged a professional negotiator who is a Professor of Industrial Relations, Prof. Dafe Otobo, to facilitate further constructive engagements between government and union leaders, with the active involvement of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.

“The negotiator has since met with all the unions individually. A joint meeting of the unions with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, with the negotiator, has also taken place as of Thursday, October 24, 2025. All these are being done to facilitate decisions at the CBA and ensure comprehensive, universally discussed, and agreed solutions to the agitations of health workers, which have been missing in recent past negotiations.”

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