The Yobe State Government has approved the upgrade of the Ngelzarma Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) to a general hospital as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen healthcare delivery and improve access to quality medical services across the state.
The approval, announced in a statement issued in Damaturu by the Director-General of Press and Media Affairs to the Governor, Mamman Mohammed, followed the growing population of Ngelzarma and neighbouring communities, which has increased demand for better healthcare services.
Governor Mai Mala Buni said the latest approval aligns with his administration’s health sector reforms, which prioritise expanding access to quality healthcare for residents.
“This is in line with the reforms declared in the health sector by the state government. Healthcare development occupies a prominent position among our priorities,” the governor said.
Buni assured residents that the upgraded facility, located in Ngelzarma along the 100-kilometre Damaturu-Potiskum highway, would be equipped with modern medical equipment and the necessary infrastructure to function as a standard general hospital.
The governor said the project is part of a broader investment by his administration to improve healthcare services across Yobe.
As part of the reforms, the state government had earlier upgraded primary healthcare centres in Bara, Buni Gari, Babbangida, Yunusari, Machina, Jajimaji, Nguru and Gulani to general hospitals.
It also converted general hospitals in Potiskum, Gashua, Geidam and Buni-Yadi into specialist hospitals, expanding the state’s capacity to provide advanced medical care.
The government said the upgrade of the Ngelzarma facility will improve access to secondary healthcare services for residents of the community and surrounding areas while reducing referrals to hospitals located farther away.
