The management of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) has refunded more than N1 billion to the Federal Government, representing unpaid salaries for staff members who left the hospital for opportunities abroad.
This amount was drawn from the hospital’s 2024 budget.
Prof. Emem Bassey, Chief Medical Director (CMD) of UUTH, expressed concerns about the impact of the “Japa” phenomenon, where medical professionals are migrating abroad, and warned that if the Federal Government does not address this issue, Nigeria’s teaching hospitals might lose even more qualified staff.
Prof. Bassey made these remarks in Abuja during a budget defense session before the House of Representatives committee on tertiary health institutions.
He detailed UUTH’s 2024 capital appropriation, which stood at N20.6 billion, broken down into N12.8 billion for personnel costs, N240 million for overhead, and N7.5 billion for capital expenses.
However, only N11.8 billion was released for personnel expenses, leaving a balance of over N1 billion that could not be used due to unfilled recruitment positions by year’s end.
The CMD also mentioned that, while the hospital successfully achieved a 99 percent release of overhead funds, a delay by the Federal Executive Council slowed progress on the radio diagnostics center project.
For 2025, UUTH is proposing a budget of N19.93 billion for overhead costs and N21 billion for capital projects.
