The Kano State House of Assembly on Tuesday passed into law the state Health Trust Fund Bill (KHETFUND) with overwhelming majority votes.

This was announced in a statement via email by Aminu Magashi Garba, Coordinator and Founder of Africa Health Budget Network (AHBN), Civil Societies Representatives, Global Financing (GFF) Investors Group as well as Community Health and Research Initiative (CHR).

Garba said the law would ensure sustainable financing of the health sector in the state.

He said the fund would be funded as proposed via a monthly five percent deduction of the total money generated from taxation and one percent monthly from total statutory allocation to the 44 Local Government Areas of the state.

According to him, it is estimated that despite the economic recession, the Fund would generate over N2.5 billion yearly.

“The role of Community Health and Research Initiative (CHR) was only catalytic and technical to support the assembly take ownership of the process upon a formal written invitation by the Clerk of the House.

“We are also happy to note that CHR support to this process was not funded by any of its current and/or previous projects funded by local and/or international development partners and at no point anywhere in this process that donors’ names were mentioned or their funds were used,” he said.

Garba said passage of the Bill has concluded "season one."

“We will now shift our technical support and advocacy for the Executive Governor of Kano State Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje to assent the law," adding that another series of engagements would follow with the State Ministry of Health in developing guidelines and ownership for its implementation and for its capturing in the 2018 budget process.

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