The House of Representatives yesterday mandated its relevant committees to liaise with government agencies towards strengthening alternative healthcare services in the country.
This followed the adoption of a motion by Rep. Balarabe Kakale (APC-Sokoto) who said COVID-19 had exposed Nigeria’s over reliance on imported medicines and other related health services.
He said the shortage of these had led to an increase in awareness for locally sourced health solutions with more Nigerians demanding health care services that were homegrown, accessible and affordable.
“Failure to strengthen and adequately utilise alternative medicines in the country undermines the sustainability of the domestic structures, denies Nigerians the opportunity to test their usefulness in the prevention and cure of various ailments, and leads to waste of resources.
“Aware that evidence has shown that Nigeria, in particular, has a plethora of medicinal plants scientifically proven to have immense health benefits but the country has failed to effectively use them.
In his ruling, the Deputy Speaker Ahmed Wase mandated eight committees of the house to ensure compliance and report back within four weeks for further legislative actions. (NAN)
