The Federal
Government yesterday commenced the finalisation of the national oral
health policy at a three-day stakeholder’s workshop in Abuja. This is to
popularise and develop oral health in the country.
Oral health is a
state of well being of the oral cavity including the teeth as well as
the supporting structures and tissues. It is a state of absence of
disease and optional functioning of the mouth and its tissues in a
manner which preserves them.
Declaring the
workshop open, The Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu stated that
finalisation of oral health policy will help in solving future
controversial and thorny-age related issues and will certainly situate
our oral health system on a pedestal for development.
He cited that a
national oral health policy based on primary health care approach was
approved by the National Council of Health in 1990. Subsequently, the
federal ministry of health embarked on a review of the policy in line
with the World Health Organisation (WHO) African regional oral health
strategy approved in 1998 by member countries of the WHO regional office
for Africa. That particular policy document would have been outdated by
now in view of the dynamics of health and health reforms emerging
diseases as well as economic facts of life.
Mr Chukwu stated
that “a draft oral health policy has also been produced by an expert
committee in collaboration with WHO and the workshop was being organised
or all stakeholders in the oral health sector to make contributions to
the production of a final copy.”
“It is imperative
for us to formulate an all inclusive national policy on oral health that
will contribute meaningfully to the overall performance of the health
sector,” he said.
The minister
expects the workshop to define roles and responsibility of each
stakeholders in the oral health sector which will inform performance
monitoring and evaluation; and look at how to regulate oral health
products and address availability of basic oral health services.
