The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has advanced his “Soldier First” agenda with moves to modernise healthcare facilities and improve medical services for Nigerian Army personnel and their families.
According to an official statement signed by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, Shaibu made the commitment on Thursday, 3 September 2026, when he received a high-level delegation at Army Headquarters, Abuja, to discuss strategic collaboration on healthcare delivery and infrastructure.
The delegation was led by former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai (Rtd), and included representatives of Honey Star Resources Limited, M&P, Elevate Egypt and the League of African Ambassadors.
The engagement focused on establishing a sustainable Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to develop and upgrade Nigerian Army healthcare facilities, provide modern medical equipment, strengthen pharmaceutical support and deploy digital health solutions across Army establishments.
The proposed collaboration is expected to improve the capacity, accessibility and resilience of military medical facilities while ensuring better healthcare services for soldiers and their families.
Shaibu said the health and wellbeing of personnel and their families remained central to his “Soldier First” concept, stressing that quality healthcare was critical to the operational effectiveness of the Nigerian Army.
He explained that sustained investment in healthcare would support his command philosophy of transforming the Army into a more professional, adaptable, combat-ready and resilient force capable of effectively discharging its constitutional responsibilities.
The COAS further emphasised that a healthy, motivated and well-supported force was fundamental to operational readiness, morale and sustained effectiveness.
He therefore welcomed credible partnerships capable of providing investment, expertise, technology and innovative healthcare solutions to complement government efforts and deliver sustainable benefits to Army personnel and their families.
The Army said the proposed partnership underscores its commitment to leveraging credible private-sector expertise and investment to strengthen personnel welfare and modernise critical healthcare infrastructure.
It added that the collaboration, involving Honey Star Resources, M&P, Elevate Egypt and the League of African Ambassadors, would contribute to building a more resilient military healthcare system capable of supporting troops and enhancing the Army’s operational readiness.
