PROTOCOLS
- It is with a deep sense of responsibility that I am here today to commission the South East Zonal Office of the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria as a landmark addition to our shared commitment to elevate the standard of radiography practice and patient care across Nigeria in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Federal Government. I extend my heartfelt commendation to the leadership of the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria ably led by the Registrar, Prof. Mark Chukwudi Okeji for making this project come through. I am happy to announce that the finishing touches and furnishing of the complex has been provided for in the 2026 budget proposal of the federal government. We are very hopeful that it will be approved by the national assembly and implemented soon in order to ensure that the complex is put to use very quickly.
- In line with the first pillar of the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative, the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare is committed to supporting regulatory bodies to carry out their mandates of regulating standards of practice and enforcement of compliance in order to ensure quality healthcare delivery for Nigerians. It is a common knowledge that without proper regulation and monitoring, quackery thrives, standard of practice becomes compromised, patients suffers and health outcomes are negatively impacted. It is against this background that the The Federal government under the visionary leadership of HE President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR has continued to accord priority attention to our regulatory bodies including the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria.
- You will recall that when this administration assumed office in May 2023, professional regulatory bodies including those in the health sector were no longer enjoying government budgetary funding. The President in a clear demonstration of the understanding of the critical roles being played by health regularory bodies swiftly reveresed this decision of the previous administration and today the health regulatory bodies are enjoying government budgetary funding unlike their peers in other sectors.
- You will also recall that when I assumed office as Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare in October, 2024, I made it a priority to visit virtually all the regulatory bodies under my supervision including the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (first ministerial visit for some of them). This was done to further underscore the strategic standpoint of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu led federal government that to deliver quality healthcare to Nigerians, the professional regulatory bodies in the sector must enjoy the optimal support of government. I will therefore like to charge you to reciprocate this preferential gestures of government by rededicating yourself to your duties, ensuring that professionals practice within the sector maintain the highest standard of ethical conduct and quality that prioritize patients welfare. The Federal Government is determined to ensure strict regulation of professional practices and standards in the health sector. Quackery, malpractices, negligence and other infactions will continue to enjoy high scrutiny of government with appropriate sanctions metted out to those fund culprable. I call on the Radiographers Registration Board to ensure this agenda in the practice of radiograph in the country.
- As we all know, a well-regulated, highly skilled workforce ensures accurate diagnoses, safer procedures, and improved patient outcomes. The board must therefore redouble its efforts in safeguarding professional standards, licensing, and continuing professional education for radiographers. In this way, we will strengthen public trust and reassure our patients that every radiographer upholds the highest levels of ethics, safety, and competence. I urge you to expand licensing coverage to ensure all radiographers practicing in Nigeria are duly registered, enforce ethical standards, and radiation safety protocols to minimize risk to patients and staff.
- It is also important that you continue to expand and deepen the use of digital platforms in order to take regulatory services closer to the people, reach the underserved areas with training and improve your efficiency.You should also continue to promote capacity building by accrediting and enforcing continuing professional development programs to keep practitioners at the cutting edge of knowledge. It is my hope that this zonal office being commissiined today will enhance access to registration, licensing, compliance, and continuing professional development for practitioners in the Southeast and neighboring regions.
- Before I end this address, let me extend my gratitude to the government and people of Enugu State for the cooperation enjoyed by the board which created the enabling environment for this project. I commend the Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Nduduisi Mbah for his transformative overhaul of the health sector with focus on personnel recruitment and development, infrastructural provision and technology enablement. The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare will continue to work with the Enugu State Government in order to ensure that all Enugu people have access to quality, essential preventive, curative rehabillitative and palliative health services without suffering financial hardship.
- Finally, I would like to also use this opportunity to acknowledge our dedicated radiographers who are critical backbone of radiography services in Nigeria. Your services in bridging technology and patient care by producing, analyzing and optimizing diagnostic images from X-ray, MRI, CT and ultrasound remains a life saving cornerstone of modern healthcare services. I urge you not to rest on your oars but continue to develop yourself and your professional practice in line with modern trends. Once again, I commend the registrar of the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria, the management and all members of staff of the board for their dedication to our country. I particularly thank Professor Mark Okeji who is gradually winding down as the registrar of the board for his service and his contribution to the development of radiography in Nigeria. I wish you the very best as you proceed on another path of service to Nigeria and to humanity.
- Today, as we cut the ribbon and formally inaugurate this Enugu Zonal Office, I want to reaffirm our commitment to a Nigeria where every patient receives safe, timely, and high-quality radiography services. Let this occasion symbolize the unity of purpose across government: policy formulators, regulatory bodies, health institutions, and the communities we serve. May this zonal office be a catalyst for professional excellence, better health outcomes, and national prosperity.
- And so with peace and plenty, Nigeria shall be blessed. Thank you for your attention.
