PREMIUM TIMES
The co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), one of the world’s most prominent private investors in the global healthcare system, Bill Gates, is set to visit Nigeria to discuss issues around health and development in the country and the continent of Africa.
This visit is coming a few days after President Bola Tinubu announced Salma Anas as his special adviser on health.
Mrs Anas is one of the first advisers appointed by the president who has barely spent 20 days in office.
Stakeholders in the nation’s health sector have described Mr Tinubu’s action as a welcome development, saying it signals the importance his administration may accord the health sector.
They also hailed the appointee as a round peg in a round hole, saying her more than 25 years in health sector development would count in assisting the new administration in implementing its healthcare development plans.
Gates’ visit
In a statement issued weekend by the BMGF media team, Mr Gates will be in Niger and Nigeria next week.
Though not stated in the statement, PREMIUM TIMES learnt the visitor will also meet the president and other stakeholders, including the Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote.
Mr Gates’ visit to the two African nations is said to be a follow-up to his earlier visit to China and aimed at “discussing global health and development with national and local leaders, foundation partners, grantees, scientists, and young innovators.”
The statement also noted that the visit is part of the Foundation’s commitment “to work closely with communities and leaders to support innovation that can help accelerate progress and improve lives across Africa.”
The statement added: “Gates and other foundation leaders are visiting to learn from partners helping to address polio, anaemia, and other health threats; scientists applying research to develop agricultural innovations that will help with food security and climate adaptation; innovators using technology to improve access to financial services; and others working to improve lives in Niger and Nigeria and throughout the continent.
“They will also meet with national and regional leaders to encourage them to make investments and advance policies that promote innovation and provide equitable…
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