North East Development Commission (NEDC) has procured and installed eye and optical equipment valued at over N3 billion at the Borno State Eye Hospital, Maiduguri, as part of its comprehensive renovation and re-equipment intervention at the facility.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, Ambassador Mohammed Alkali Goni, disclosed this on Monday while inspecting the newly installed equipment, months after an earlier assessment revealed major gaps in the hospital’s diagnostic and treatment facilities.
Goni assured that the intervention would go beyond equipment supply, adding that more machines would be provided alongside specialised training for personnel to operate and maintain them.
> “By aligning the deployment of advanced equipment with structured professional training, the Commission is tackling avoidable blindness, expanding access to specialist care, and strengthening the resilience of tertiary health institutions across the North-East. The impact of this programme is both far-reaching and enduring,” Alkali said.
The NEDC boss expressed satisfaction with the quality of the installations and the training programme designed for the personnel who will handle the equipment.
During the inspection and monitoring exercise, Alkali and members of the Commission’s management team were conducted around the hospital’s studios, conference hall and other facilities by Professor Abdull Mohammed Mahdi, a Consultant Ophthalmologist.
First-of-Its-Kind Equipment in the North-East
Prof. Mahdi told the NEDC management that the newly installed machines were among the most sophisticated and first of their kind in the entire North-East region.
He noted that most of the equipment had never been available in the region until now.
> He said most of the equipment and machines had not been available in the entire North-East in the past, except now that the Commission provided them through its intervention drive.
Mahdi added that technicians to man the equipment had undergone two weeks of intensive training conducted by experts and consultants drawn from Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
According to him, the development is a major boost for the hospital and residents of Borno State, as well as patients from other parts of the region and the country.
He also commended the NEDC for the intervention, stressing that prior to now, the hospital lacked adequate equipment, trained personnel and physical structures to cater for the high number of patients.
He particularly highlighted the absence of MRI machines in the entire North-East region until the Commission’s intervention.
It will be recalled that the NEDC recently commenced a two-week Ophthalmology Equipment Set-Up and Training Programme at the Maiduguri Eye Hospital, marking a significant milestone in its efforts to strengthen specialist healthcare services in the region.
Activities on the first day included the installation and coupling of state-of-the-art ophthalmic equipment, as well as hands-on technical and clinical training sessions.
These sessions are aimed at ensuring that the advanced equipment deployed by the Commission is fully operational and optimally configured to support quality eye-care service delivery.
The training is being led by Prof. Abdull Mohammed Mahdi, MBBS, MSc, PGD, FWACS, PhD, a renowned expert and Chief Consultant in Ophthalmology.
The installation is co-facilitated by Dr. Abuh Sunday, Chief Consultant in Ophthalmology, with support from a team of specialists in Ophthalmology and Biomedical Engineering.
The capacity-building programme targets consultant ophthalmologists, resident doctors, ophthalmic nurses, optometrists and biomedical technicians, who are receiving intensive training in equipment operation, maintenance and optimal usage.
The programme is also designed to enhance surgical and diagnostic capacity, improve outcomes for cataract and glaucoma patients, and strengthen the hospital’s ability to deliver safe, modern and efficient eye-care services.
Importantly, it supports the long-term objective of positioning Maiduguri Eye Hospital as a regional centre of excellence for ophthalmic care.
Consultant ophthalmologists, resident doctors, ophthalmic nurses and biomedical engineers from the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital are also participating in the training.
Infrastructure Upgrade and Regional Expansion
Beyond training and equipment, the NEDC is undertaking significant infrastructure upgrades and renovation works at the Maiduguri Eye Hospital to improve clinical spaces, support modern equipment use and enhance overall patient experience.
These upgrades reinforce the Commission’s integrated approach to healthcare development by combining infrastructure, equipment and human capacity investments.
Outside Borno State, similar high-impact interventions are ongoing across the North-East. Notably, the construction of an ultra-modern Eye Institute at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi, which commenced last year, is slated for accelerated implementation this year.
This intervention, observers say, could not have come at a better time, as it combines strategic investment in modern medical infrastructure with deliberate human capacity development.
