Action Aid Nigeria and the Public Service International (PSI) has called on the Federal Government to suspend or cancel all debt payments up to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and renegotiate debt servicing such that it does not exceed 12percent of national revenue as exceeding this level would impact negatively on public service.
The groups in commemoration of the World Public Service Day said it will tackle the menace of paucity of funds.
The Country Director, Ene Obi said Nigeria will not be able to attain the Sustainable Development goal by 2030 without considerable improvement in public health infrastructure and education.
She further said since 2014 budget for the sector had never crossed 6percent of the annual budget making the country one of the highest out of pocket health expenditure in the world which is currently at about 75percent.
On Gender Pulic Service research, Obi while speaking at the celebration yesterday said the report conducted in the North Central and Southern region revealed that most health care centers are not well maintained, while health workers in the centers are being underpaid and over burdened adding that Doctors and Nurses are not posted to grassroots health care centers.
She called on government to increase tax to GDP ratio by 5percent over 5 years, that is setting a plan fro expanding the tax to GDP rate from its present ratio of 6percent to 15percent by 2030 saying it would enable government to double the current spending on essential public services and make them universal.
She also called on government to reject any aid from the World Bank and other multi lateral development banks that support privatization of public private Patnerships adding that government must ensure that available and potential resources mobilized for post Covid-19 are earmarked for public services and for rebuilding public financing.
In the same vein, an official of the PSI , Mrs Abiodun Badru in her remarks lamented that about 300 health workers infected with COVID-19 in the line of duty.
She also called on the need for government to invest in the health sector being signatory to the Abuja Declaration agreement to invest at least 15 percent of the annual budget in health to achieve the Sustainable Development goal in the health sector.
She said without government investing in health, without improvement in infrastructure for health services and human resource for health and improve welfare packages for health workers, the Country may not be able to meet the SDG goals”
In her words “We urge government to invest in health, Education and Water Resources. We say no to privatization of water resources Nigerian deserve to have access to water in their homes.”
“We ask for increase in budget for health women and children deserve access to health. Nigeria still has the highest infant and maternal death Rae in the world. Ned to employ skilled birth attendants in maternity wards”.
