Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has unveiled a new healthcare development roadmap for the state, disclosing that Lagos requires about 40,000 doctors to adequately meet the healthcare needs of its growing population.
The governor also revealed that the state currently has about 7,000 doctors and faces a shortage of about 40,000 nurses.
Truth Live News gathered that Sanwo-Olu made the disclosure while declaring open the 2nd Eko Health Convention in Lagos on Thursday, August 6, 2026. The convention was themed, “Building a Healthier Lagos: Connecting Access with Excellence.”
He said the next phase of the state’s healthcare reform agenda would focus on building a sustainable system that combines wider access with quality healthcare delivery.
According to the governor, the government is shifting from simply constructing healthcare facilities to building institutions capable of delivering quality services for generations.
“Access without excellence is a queue. It is a clinic within walking distance where the drugs have run out. Excellence without access is a showpiece. It is a world-class hospital that a mother in Ajegunle will never enter. Lagos is not interested in either,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu said the administration’s goal is to ensure every resident can access quality healthcare regardless of location or financial status.
“Delivering a project is one thing. Building an institution that will still be delivering when all of us in this hall have moved on is another thing entirely,” he added.
A key component of the roadmap, according to the governor, is the expansion of digital healthcare through the Lagos Smart Health Information Platform (SHIP), a health information exchange system designed to improve patient care through better data management.
He disclosed that the first phase of the platform has achieved about 30 per cent implementation, covering general hospitals, teaching hospitals and more than 300 primary healthcare centres across the state.
According to him, SHIP will enable patients’ medical records to be accessed across healthcare facilities, reduce unnecessary repeat tests and support better clinical and policy decisions.
“When the record travels, the clinician sees the whole patient. When the data comes together, the policymaker sees the whole city. We move from reacting to anticipating,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu also disclosed that enrolment under the state’s Ilera Eko Health Insurance Scheme had reached 1,502,994 residents as of May 2026, with women accounting for more than half of the beneficiaries.
He said the growing enrolment showed that health insurance was translating into real access to healthcare rather than merely issuing insurance cards.
The governor added that the state’s healthcare financing reforms are aimed at reducing residents’ dependence on out-of-pocket medical expenses.
He further revealed that the LASHMA Assistance in Distress programme, introduced to provide emergency medical care regardless of a patient’s ability to pay, has saved 18 lives since its launch in March 2026.
According to him, the intervention has supported victims of road traffic accidents, surgical emergencies, obstetric complications and stroke cases.
“In an emergency, a Lagosian should be stabilised first and asked about payment afterwards,” he said.
On healthcare manpower, Sanwo-Olu said the government is addressing workforce shortages through recruitment, improved welfare packages, staff accommodation and increased investment in medical education.
He also disclosed that Lagos faces a healthcare funding gap of about ₦100 billion, noting that declining donor support has made sustainable financing reforms increasingly necessary.
The governor announced plans to establish a dedicated University of Medicine and Health Sciences to expand the training of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals.
He stressed that the success of the healthcare system should be measured not only by the number of hospitals built but by how effectively the institutions continue to serve residents.
Speaking at the convention, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, said the Eko Health Convention provides a platform for stakeholders across the healthcare sector to strengthen collaboration.
He said the Ministry of Health is responsible for ensuring quality healthcare delivery across the public, private and informal sectors.
“The Ministry of Health is not the Ministry of Health for public facilities. It is the Ministry of Health for all Lagosians,” he said.
Abayomi said the state is also working to regulate the informal healthcare sector, including traditional medicine practitioners, alternative medicine providers and patent medicine vendors, to improve service quality.
He added that Lagos is positioning itself as a medical tourism destination through investments in specialist healthcare facilities while encouraging healthcare professionals in the diaspora to return and contribute to the state’s health sector.
The commissioner also highlighted the role of technology in expanding healthcare access through telemedicine, virtual learning and remote medical expertise.
He urged residents to embrace health insurance and avoid self-medication, particularly for suspected malaria.
According to him, improved testing has reduced malaria test positivity in public health facilities from about 60 per cent to 5 per cent, while malaria prevalence in Lagos has declined from about 15 per cent 15 years ago to 2 per cent.
Also speaking, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Health, Dr Kemi Ogunyemi, urged healthcare professionals to remain committed to strengthening the state’s health system.
She said the government would continue investing in skills development, innovation and professional growth while encouraging healthcare workers abroad to contribute their expertise to Lagos.
“Government cannot do it all. We need everybody,” she said.
