The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) says its investments in healthcare have helped Nigeria retain about $200 million that would otherwise have been spent on medical treatment abroad.
NSIA Managing Director, Aminu Umar-Sadiq, disclosed this while highlighting the authority’s efforts to reduce medical tourism and expand access to specialised healthcare within Nigeria.
He said the intervention was driven largely through the establishment of NSIA Advanced Medical Services Limited (MedServe), which has invested in oncology, diagnostics and other specialised medical services.
According to Umar-Sadiq, the MedServe-LUTH Cancer Centre (MLCC) in Lagos has treated thousands of Nigerians since it began operations.
“Since inception, MLCC has delivered more than 25,000 radiotherapy sessions and 10,000 chemotherapy treatments to approximately 15,000 unique patients,” he said.
He explained that the centre had also contributed to reversing the trend of medical tourism, with some Nigerians who previously travelled abroad for treatment being referred back to the facility because of the quality and affordability of services available locally.
Umar-Sadiq said treatment at the centre remained considerably cheaper than comparable services overseas, with costs in many cases less than half of what patients would pay abroad.
He estimated that the interventions had prevented more than $200 million in foreign exchange outflows associated with overseas treatment and related expenses.
The MLCC, commissioned in Lagos in 2019, also occupies a significant position in Nigeria’s cancer-care infrastructure.
According to the NSIA chief, the facility became the first oncology centre in Nigeria to provide 3D Conformal Radiotherapy and currently houses the largest concentration of radiotherapy equipment in West Africa.
He noted that the importance of developing local specialised healthcare capacity became particularly apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic, when international travel restrictions disrupted access to treatment outside Nigeria.
Beyond oncology, MedServe has expanded its diagnostic services to other parts of the country.
Umar-Sadiq disclosed that MedServe diagnostic centres in Kano and Umuahia had provided pathology, radiology and other diagnostic services to more than 410,000 patients by December 2025.
He said the NSIA was also planning a further expansion of its healthcare investments across 13 states.
The planned expansion includes 13 additional diagnostic centres, three new oncology centres and three cardiac catheterisation laboratories.
According to him, the expansion is intended to bring specialised medical services closer to Nigerians while reducing the need for patients to travel long distances or seek treatment overseas.
The NSIA said the investments form part of its broader healthcare strategy aimed at strengthening domestic capacity, improving access to specialised treatment and reducing the economic burden associated with medical tourism.
