Umo Eno: Hero of health sector

By Emmanuel Nicholas

Under the ARISE Agenda, Governor Umo Eno has redefined what responsive leadership looks like in public health.

Since assuming office, he has treated healthcare not as an afterthought, but as the foundation for human dignity, economic growth, and social stability in Akwa Ibom State.

His administration’s bold investments have turned hospitals, clinics, and emergency systems into institutions that now work for the people.

Governor Eno prioritized access by building and modernizing primary health centers across all local government areas. Communities in Uyo, Obot Akara, Etim Ekpo, Oron, Uruan, Nsit Ubium, Nsit Atai, Ibesikpo Asutan, Etinan, Abak, Oruk Anam, Itu, Ibiono , Ikono, Ini, Onna, Udung Uko, Okobo, etc and beyond now have PHCs equipped with doctors’ and nurses’ quarters.

This decentralized approach means a mother in a rural village no longer has to travel hours to Uyo for basic care. The goal is simple: quality care within reach.

In a landmark move, he unveiled the state-of-the-art Akwa Ibom State Medical Oxygen Production Plant, AKSMOPP, in Ituk Mbang General Hospital and disease control centre.

The plant ended the state’s dependence on outsourced oxygen supply and now guarantees a steady, affordable flow of medical oxygen to hospitals during surgeries, emergencies, and respiratory cases. It is infrastructure that literally breathes life into the health system.

True to his vision for medical tourism, Governor Eno is building the 350-bed Ibom Medical City, an international hospital designed to deliver specialized care locally.

The project aims to keep patients, doctors, and resources in Nigeria while attracting patients from across West Africa. It positions Akwa Ibom as a destination for advanced medicine, not just a place people leave to seek treatment.

The Ibom Specialist Hospital has also been restructured to operate as an independent, highly efficient entity. With better management, new equipment, and clearer service protocols, it is fast becoming a center of excellence for complex treatments that once required travel abroad. Patients now get specialist attention without leaving the state.

When seconds matter, the state now has an answer. Through AKISEMSAS, the Akwa Ibom State Emergency Medical Service and Ambulance System, the Governor launched 28 tracked ambulances and a central command call center.

For the first time, residents can dial for help and expect a coordinated, rapid response anywhere in the state. It is a lifeline that turns emergencies into survivable moments.

No health system can stand without its workforce. Under Governor Eno, the state approved the recruitment of 2,854 medical personnel, one of the largest hiring drives in recent history.

Retired but willing professionals were also engaged on contract to bridge critical gaps immediately. The empty wards and overworked staff of the past are gradually giving way to a fully staffed system.

Akwa Ibom State University now has a full teaching hospital that will train nurses, doctors in different professional fields, pharmacists, lab technicians, pathologists and other medical staff

Beyond numbers, welfare mattered. The administration reviewed the consolidated medical salary structure and introduced special incentives for doctors and nurses serving in rural primary facilities.

This policy recognizes the sacrifice of those working far from city centers. In addition, the payment of the Medical Residency Training Fund, MRTF, was approved, and clear career progression policies were implemented so young doctors can train and grow their careers at home.

Healthcare financing received equal attention. Through ARISE Care, the state health insurance scheme, tens of thousands of vulnerable residents now access free or affordable medical care. Pregnant women, children under 5, and citizens over 65 also enjoy free Medicare. It is healthcare with a human face, designed to protect those who need it most.

A major pillar of the ARISE Agenda is making healthcare affordable through ARISE Care, the state health insurance scheme. Unlike programs that exist only on paper, this scheme was designed to reach the grassroots.

It provides free or heavily subsidized care to low-income families, market women, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups.

Through pooling resources and partnering with accredited facilities, the government has ensured that a hospital visit no longer means choosing between treatment and feeding. Tens of thousands have already been enrolled, and the aim is to make coverage universal across all 31 local government areas.

Governor Eno is also bringing healthcare to where people move the most. A state-of-the-art clinic is being built at Victor Attah International Airport.

The facility will offer 24-hour emergency care, travel health services, rapid diagnostics, and specialist consultations for passengers, staff, and the surrounding host communities. It reflects a forward-thinking approach: treating the airport not just as a gateway, but as a health access point for both residents and visitors coming into Akwa Ibom.

Caring for those who built the state has also been central to his vision; the administration built a dedicated Elderly People’s Center at the medical corridor, complete with a specialized geriatric clinic.

The center will provide routine checkups, chronic disease management, physiotherapy, and social support tailored to citizens over 60.

Via creating a space that honors and cares for the elderly with dignity, Governor Eno is ensuring that aging in Akwa Ibom means aging with access, respect, and quality care.

General hospitals are also getting a facelift. Three new general hospitals are part of the plan, with one already completed in Ukanfun Local Government Area and another ongoing in Nsit Ubium. Existing general hospitals have been re-equipped with top medical machines, like dialysis machines, full-body scanners, and MRI machines, bringing diagnostics and treatment closer to the people and reducing referral burdens.

To lock in these gains for the future, Governor Eno transmitted nine Health Sector Reform Bills to the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly.

The bills include the Public Health Security Bill, Healthcare Facilities and Service Standards Monitoring and Accreditation Agency Bill, Health Insurance Agency Amendment, College of Health Technology Establishment, College of Nursing Sciences Amendment, Medical Residency Training Bill, Primary Healthcare Development Agency Amendment, Drugs and Health Supplies Management Agency Bill, and the University Teaching Hospital Establishment Bill. These laws will ensure continuity beyond any single administration.

The impact of these reforms has drawn national recognition. The Body of Heads of Nursing Services and Principals in Federal Health Institutions, BOHNAPFHI, honored Governor Eno for “exemplary leadership, visionary contributions and unwavering commitment to the development of healthcare services and infrastructure through the ARISE Agenda.” The delegation specifically praised the model primary healthcare centers and the Ibom Medical City project.

The National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) went further and conferred on him the Nurse-Friendly Governor Award. They cited his “outstanding leadership, exceptional commitment and deliberate investment in strengthening the nursing and midwifery workforce.” The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria described the projects as commendable and worthy of recognition across the country.

What makes the award meritorious is not one project, but the pattern. Governor Eno did not focus on headlines alone. He built the foundation, staffed it, equipped it, insured the poor, legislated it, and responded when lives were on the line. He treated healthcare as a system, not a speech.

For turning healthcare in Akwa Ibom from a challenge into a working promise, Governor Umo Eno stands tall as a true hero of the health sector. His work proves that with vision and deliberate investment, public health can deliver dignity, hope, and healing to every citizen.