JALINGO, Nigeria — The World Bank-supported IMPACT project, working with the Taraba State Primary Health Care Development Agency (TSPHCDA), has launched a statewide distribution of medical equipment and motorcycles to monitoring and evaluation units in all 16 local government areas of the state, in a move aimed at improving supervision, data management and service delivery at primary healthcare facilities.
At the flag-off ceremony in Jalingo, TSPHCDA Executive Secretary Dr. Tukura Nuhu Nyigwa described the intervention as a strategic effort to strengthen healthcare operations at the grassroots. He said the motorcycles and equipment would help health officials carry out outreach, routine monitoring and faster reporting from primary healthcare centres across the state. State health officials said the rollout is part of a broader push to improve access to quality healthcare, particularly for women and children. According to reports on the event, the IMPACT programme in Taraba has been active since January 2025, supporting the upgrading and revitalization of health facilities and helping improve service delivery in several local government areas.
Representing the World Bank-supported project, Dr. Onoriode Ezire, identified in earlier coverage as the task team lead for IMPACT, praised progress in Taraba and urged local governments to take ownership of the upgraded facilities to ensure the gains are sustained. The broader IMPACT programme focuses on improving maternal and child health outcomes, expanding immunization coverage and strengthening malaria control through better-equipped primary healthcare systems.
Taraba State Commissioner for Health Dr. Bordiya G. Buma, who symbolically presented some of the items to selected councils, said the distribution would provide a major boost to primary healthcare operations. Reports also quoted local government representatives as saying the benefits of the project are already becoming visible in communities across the state.
The initiative reflects a wider trend in several Nigerian states where World Bank-backed health programmes are shifting from renovation and staff support to logistics, mobility and monitoring capacity — critical gaps that often affect vaccine delivery, maternal care and disease surveillance at the primary care level. In Taraba, officials are presenting the latest rollout as a practical step toward making those earlier facility upgrades work better on a day-to-day basis
