The Federal Government has declared zero tolerance for corruption in the health sector, warning that diversion of healthcare resources could cost lives and undermine efforts to improve healthcare delivery across the country.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, stated this on Monday in Abuja during the inauguration of a Joint Task Team comprising officials of the ministry and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

Pate said the collaboration was aimed at preventing corruption by identifying institutional weaknesses, strengthening controls and improving oversight of health-sector resources.

“Let me be unequivocal: this Ministry will not tolerate corruption,” he said.

According to him, the ministry is already strengthening accountability mechanisms in programmes involving significant public funds, including the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) 2.0.

He said 774 officers, one from each local government area, had been assigned to independently verify funds received and utilised under the programme.

Pate added that the use of verified National Identification Numbers would help authenticate beneficiaries and reduce duplication, while tighter standards had been introduced to ensure proper utilisation of funds.

He said the ministry was also digitising its processes to enable resources to be tracked from allocation to utilisation, while the ICPC would provide independent preventive oversight.

The minister urged public servants, contractors, development partners and citizens to support efforts to expose and prevent corruption in the health sector.

He charged members of the task team to carry out their duties with professionalism, independence and diligence, saying their recommendations should strengthen institutional systems beyond the lifespan of the team.

The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Ms Daju Kachollom, described the partnership with the ICPC as timely, saying the task team would be integrated into existing ministry structures to ensure continuity.

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She said the team would be co-chaired by the Director of Hospital Services, representing the ministry, and an ICPC director, with representatives from relevant departments and supervising offices.

Kachollom added that the team would conduct assessments after each quarterly BHCPF disbursement, with the BHCPF Secretariat serving as its secretariat during the two-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

The ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu, represented by the Executive Secretary, Mr Clifford Oparaodu, said the task team would give practical effect to the MoU signed between the commission and the ministry in October 2025.

Aliyu said the agreement was intended to promote transparency, accountability and integrity in the management of health-sector resources, particularly BHCPF funds.

He said the ultimate objective was to ensure that funds allocated to primary healthcare reached the intended facilities and beneficiaries, while weaknesses in the system were identified and addressed.

According to him, corruption in the health sector should not be measured only by financial losses, as its consequences could directly affect healthcare access and human lives.

He cited maternal and infant mortality, immunisation rates, deaths from preventable diseases and access to affordable healthcare as areas that could be affected by corruption.

Aliyu urged the task team to verify information, inspect projects and services delivered, identify vulnerabilities, recommend practical solutions and ensure that corrective measures were implemented.

The MoU between the ministry and ICPC was signed in October 2025 to strengthen collaboration and preventive oversight in the management of health-sector resources, particularly BHCPF funds.