Advocates Push for Specialized Military Medical College

Table of Contents

Introduction to the Proposed Nigerian Military Medical College

The House of Representatives recently passed a significant bill aimed at establishing a specialized medical college for the Nigerian Armed Forces. This initiative, introduced by Hon. Babajimi Benson, Chairman of the House Committee on Defence, seeks to address critical challenges in the country's healthcare and military sectors. The proposed institution is designed to train medical professionals specifically for the needs of the Nigerian Armed Forces and other uniformed services.

Addressing Healthcare Challenges

According to Hon. Benson, the legislative framework behind the bill draws from international models, national workforce data, and the operational demands of a modern military. It aims to tackle several pressing issues, including the exodus of Nigerian physicians, frequent disruptions in civilian medical education due to industrial actions, and the need for specialized training in areas such as tropical medicine, trauma care, and CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) response.

Hon. Benson emphasized that a nation’s healthcare capacity is a crucial determinant of its security posture. For the Nigerian Army, reliable medical support is essential for force health protection, casualty management, and the welfare of troops and their dependants. However, despite progress by the Nigerian Army Medical Corps (NAMC), the broader national health sector continues to face persistent shortages of doctors, uneven distribution of specialists, and a sustained outflow of medical professionals to higher-income countries.

The Need for a Military Medical College

Establishing a military medical college would create a sustainable pipeline of physicians trained specifically for the demands of military service. Over the past decade, Nigeria has experienced a significant outflow of medical professionals. A 2022 study reported that between 2016 and 2018, over 9,000 medical doctors left Nigeria seeking opportunities abroad, with many more expressing intent to emigrate. National reporting and government statements indicate that thousands more have migrated in subsequent years.

Research suggests that as many as half of all licensed medical doctors trained in Nigeria have emigrated at some point in their careers, contributing to Nigeria’s low physician density compared to global benchmarks. The situation in the Nigerian Army and sister services is even more dire, with only 21 doctors commissioned into the Nigerian Army between 2019 and 2025, matching the number that exited the system.

Operational Implications and International Examples

The current shortage of doctors in the Nigerian Army has direct operational implications. Low physician-to-population ratios hinder routine health services, surgical capacity, and the ability to adequately staff military medical facilities. Recurring strike actions by university staff unions have also led to prolonged academic disruptions, affecting student motivation, extending training time, and negatively impacting knowledge retention.

Hon. Benson pointed to international examples of successful military medical schools, such as the Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC) in Pune, India, and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) in the United States. These institutions produce doctors who are clinically competent and familiar with military structures, ethics, and operational needs. Their graduates provide dependable staffing for military hospitals, defence-related research, and leadership in field medical operations.

Benefits of a Dedicated Military Medical College

A dedicated Nigerian military medical college would allow for contractual obligations and incentives that encourage retention, including service scholarships, guaranteed employment, and clear career progression. Operating within defence structures would also shield training from civilian academic strikes, ensuring continuity and reducing prolonged study timelines.

Military physicians require competencies beyond civilian training, including battlefield trauma care, mass-casualty management, CBRN response, tropical medicine, austere resource management, and leadership under stress. A specialized college can systematically integrate these into undergraduate and postgraduate medical curricula.

Long-Term Benefits and Governance Structure

While acknowledging that initial costs would be substantial, Hon. Benson highlighted long-term savings from reduced reliance on emergency medical recruitment, lower medical evacuation costs, improved troop health, and reduced sick days. The college could also offer paid services and postgraduate training to civilians as an additional revenue stream.

The governance structure would include a Board of Governors chaired by the Chief of Defence Staff, an academic council with representatives from the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), and a Medical Education Unit responsible for curriculum and quality assurance. Periodic external reviews and international partnerships would ensure compliance with global standards in medical education.