Buni employs 416 nurses, midwives to boost Yobe’s healthcare delivery 

Buni employs 416 nurses, midwives to boost Yobe’s healthcare delivery

By Njadvara Musa, Damaturu

The Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, has approved the immediate employment of 416 nurses and midwives to boost healthcare delivery services in the state.

According to him, the over 400 health workers are graduands of the Shehu Sule College of Nursing and Sciences (SSCNS), Damaturu.

Buni unveiled the automatic engagements of health workers on Wednesday at the official graduation ceremony of student nurses and midwives held in Damaturu.

The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Idi Barde Gubana, disclosed: “The state government’s investments in the health sector were to meet manpower requirements of hospitals and other health facilities across the state.

Gubana noted that the health workers’ employment initiatives are consistent and aligned with the health sector reforms to boost the delivery of healthcare to the people in rural communities.

Citing the College of Nursing in rural healthcare delivery, the Deputy Governor stated, “Government’s investment in the College over the past seven years had proven worthwhile, impactful, and beneficial to people living in rural and urban centres of the state.”

According to him, the state government has, in recent years, employed more than 3,500 healthcare workers, with many graduates of the college among the beneficiaries.

“You are to train adequate, qualified, and professional manpower at the health facilities, including the Specialists Hospitals at Damaturu, Potiskum and Buni-Yadi,” he charged the College authorities.

Gubana further explained that the Buni administration had deliberately invested in the health sector to ensure what he described as functional, efficient, and effective healthcare services to the people at the grassroots.

He added that, in a bid to address healthcare challenges, the government established a world-class Biomedical Research and Training Centre (BioRTC) at the Yobe State University (YSU), where its permanent site was commissioned last year to promote research and the training of young scientists in the state.

Gubana, therefore, assured the college management that the state government would consider all its requests in addressing the issues raised, pledging continued support to make the institution a leading health training centre in Nigeria.

He also commended the outgoing provost of the college, Hajiya Hadiza Sabo, for successfully completing her two-term tenure and for leading a management team that has set high standards of academic excellence.

In his remarks, the Commissioner of Health and Human Services, Dr Mohammed Lawan Gana, stated that the state emerged as the best-performing in primary healthcare delivery in Nigeria, based on an independent survey conducted by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum under the Federal Government’s National Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII).

He said that the state, therefore, clinched a $1.2 million (N1.68 billion) prize in 2025.

The College Provost, Hajiya Hadiza Sabo, revealed that between 2019 and 2026, the college graduated 1,485 students, where all of them received automatic employment upon completing their studies.

She noted that this has significantly improved the recruitment process, deployment, and retention of healthcare personnel in the state.

She added that the graduated nurses and midwives comprise 158 community nurses, 196 basic nurses and midwives, and 62 Higher National Diploma (HND) graduates in nursing from the college.