The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), a pan-African multilateral trade finance institution based in Cairo, Egypt, plans to create an African Medical Center of Excellence in Abuja.
This was revealed during a bank delegation led by Professor Benedict O. Oramah, President and Chairman, Board of Directors’ visit to the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, who welcomed the delegation, expressed his enthusiasm for the initiative, noting that the development of the Medical Centre in Abuja will not only attract people seeking medical attention from across the African continent to the Center, but also reduce medical tourism from Nigeria.
According to him; “We feel highly honoured with your tangible presence in respect of the projects you are doing here, and we look forward to your investments either directly or as an enabler because, as you know, Abuja itself is a city that started from scratch and is still a work in progress,” Malam Bello said, praising Afreximbank for its various projects and investments in the FCT. As a result, we need enablers like you.”
The Minister also asked the bank to assist the FCT Administration with infrastructure development, particularly in the proposed location of the Medical Centre of Excellence and the powering of street and traffic lights around the city.
While speaking further on electricity generation and possible areas of support from the bank, the Minister said that Nigerian laws made provisions for the Eligible Customer that consumes electricity in excess of 2 megawatts to independently source for electricity. He said that the FCT could explore this possibility with support from the bank.
He said “The power laws in Nigeria now allows for what we call Eligible Customer. Once your consumption is up to two megawatts and obviously the consumption of the city is far above two megawatts, that allows us to create a solution that is off grid, and then of course we look at renewable options”.
Earlier, Afreximbank’s President, Professor Benedict Oramah said the bank’s team was in the FCTA to brief the Minister on the progress made on the construction of the African Medical Center of Excellence and the African Trade Center in Abuja.
He also commended the FCT Minister for the tremendous support the bank has enjoyed from the FCTA, especially as it begins to implement some of its initiatives in Nigeria that are based in Abuja.
Shedding more light on the establishment of the Medical Center, the Bank’s Director Export Development and Ag. Director Project and Asset Based Finance, Oluranti Doherty said that the bank was working closely with leading international medical, human resource and construction consultants and expressed optimism that the ground breaking ceremony will be carried out by November of 2021.
The FCT Minister, had in May last year presented the Certificate of Occupancy of the land for the African Medical Center of Excellence to be situated in the proposed Abuja Medical City Development Project, to Mr Abdoulaye Kone, Afreximbank’s Regional Chief Operating Officer, Anglophone West Africa.
Also present at the meeting were the FCT Permanent Secretary, Mr. Olusade Adesola, Chief of Staff to the Minister, Malam Bashir Mai Bornu, Solicitor General, of the FCTA Barr. Yusuf Wodi, Director Lands, Adamu Hussain Jibrin, amongst other staff of the FCTA and the bank.
