The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) with three hospitals to complete the second phase of its multi-billion-naira Hospital Support Programme (NLNG HSP).
The company’s NLNG’s managing director, Dr. Philip Mshelbila, signed the MoUs with the medical directors of the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba, Delta State, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi and Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH), Nnewi, Anambra State.
The MoU with the FMC, Asaba is for the renovation and equipping of the neonatal wards and intensive care unit; ATBUTH, for the construction and equipping of laboratory complex; and NAUTH, for the renovation and construction of an oxygen plant.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Mshelbila traced the history of the NLNG-HSP initiative to the COVID-19 pandemic period when the company donated numerous intensive care medical equipment to medical institutions across Nigeria.
He said one of the fundamentals of the programme “is to foster partnerships that support infrastructural development and encourage immediate utilisation of the facilities to deliver quality healthcare services to Nigerians.”
He added: “Through this MoU, we will be able to channel our collective efforts towards addressing the healthcare needs of our people, promoting healthcare delivery, and driving positive change in the lives of vulnerable individuals.
“The hospitals involved…have a proven and long-standing tradition of providing quality healthcare services to all sections of society. This MoU will amplify our collective impact, leveraging our resources, expertise, and locations to the outcomes of the Hospital Support Programme.
The event was attended by the NLNG’s deputy managing director, Mr Olakunle Osobu; NLNG’s general manager, finance, Mrs Fatima Adanan and the chief medical directors of FMC, Asaba, Dr. Osiatuma Azubuike; NAUTH, Prof. Joseph Ugboaja and ATBUTH, Prof. Yusuf Jibrin.
The NLNG is a significant player in the energy industry globally and in Nigeria and it is one of the single-largest contributors to sustainable development in the country.
The NLNG HSP is a multi-billion-naira scheme by NLNG to reshape the healthcare landscape and enhance medical training within teaching hospitals nationwide. All the completed projects are already in active use.
It is NLNG’s national corporate social responsibility initiative aimed at boosting the healthcare delivery system in 12 federal university teaching hospitals and health institutions across the six geopolitical zones in the country.
The programme berthed in 2022 with the signing and implementation of MoUs with six hospitals in the first phase.
Beneficiaries of Phase 1 of the HSP include Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Lagos; University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH), Gwagwalada; Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH) Kano; University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin; University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar; and Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH), Yenagoa.
Projects already delivered in the second phase include the equipping of the renal centre at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), Port Harcourt, Rivers State; the renovation and equipping of an accident and emergency unit and theatre at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH), Uyo, Akwa Ibom State and the construction and equipping of a twin theatre suite at Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Jos, Plateau State.
So far, NLNG has commissioned eight of the projects.
