FROM HENRY IYORKASE, MAKURDI

Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State has approved the payment of salaries and arrears to clinical medical students of Benue origin, reviving a bonding scheme that has been suspended for ten years.

Alia explained this scheme, first introduced in 2010, was halted in 2015, leading to a severe doctor shortage in the state’s hospitals particularly in rural areas.

He made the declaration on Thursday in Makurdi, the state capital, when he spoke at the 9th induction ceremony of 41 doctors, and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to building a stronger health system and retaining medical professionals trained in the state.

Alumni and students welcomed the move, with beneficiaries will now receive over N100,000 monthly as part of efforts to retain medical professionals in the state.

He expressed his administration’s commitment to ensure the commencement of salary and arrears payments to clinical medical students of Benue State origin across Nigeria is sustained.

“Originally introduced in 2010 by former Governor Gabriel Suswam, the initiative aimed to address the shortage of doctors in Benue’s general hospitals, particularly in rural communities.

“Under the scheme, beneficiaries received monthly stipends from their 400-level studies until graduation, with the understanding that they would serve in the state’s hospitals for two years post-graduation,” he said.

The bonding scheme was discontinued in 2015 under Governor Samuel Ortom ’s administration, a move that resulted in a mass exodus of medical graduates from the state.

The collapse of the programme exacerbated the shortage of healthcare professionals and left many public hospitals understaffed, significantly affecting care delivery, particularly for pregnant women and children.

Alia reinstated the initiative shortly after assuming office in 2023, beginning with medical students at the College of Health Sciences, Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu University, Makurdi.