The Abia State Government, in partnership with the Association of Nigerian Physicians in the Americas (ANPA), will kick off its 2026 free medical outreach on April 13, 2026. About 25 doctors from the United States are expected to join local medical teams to provide free surgeries and consultations for residents of Abia State.
Announcing the details at a press conference held at Government House, Umuahia, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Enoch Ogbonnaya, said the five-day mission, scheduled from April 13 to 17, 2026, follows a directive from Governor Alex Otti.
“His Excellency sometime last year instructed the Ministry of Health to get in touch with the Association of Nigerian Physicians in the Americas (ANPA) to plan and execute a medical outreach for the Abia people this year.
“This is coming in the wake of the similar exercise that occurred two years ago in 2024,” Ogbonnaya stated.
He explained that the initiative aligns with one of Governor Otti’s 11 pillars in the health sector, which focuses on collaborating with Nigerian physicians, especially those of Abia origin, based abroad.
“Of course, Abia State origin as well, that are resident in different parts of the world, to come back home and work with the local team to extend high quality, affordable care to Ndi Abia.
“This is as a way of ensuring universal health coverage and ensuring that our people enjoy the highest quality of health care, together with all the multifarious activities that are going on in the health sector simultaneously,” he said.
According to the commissioner , the visiting physicians will arrive on April 13, with the official opening ceremony scheduled for 12 noon on April 14 at the Michael Okpara Auditorium. Full medical activities will begin the same day and run through April 17.
Two major facilities have been designated for the outreach: Aba General Hospital will handle general surgeries, while the Abia State Specialist Hospital and Diagnostic Centre in Umuahia will manage all eye-related cases and surgeries.
“We have a team of about 25 doctors that are coming from the U.S., and then we also have our local team that will work with them to ensure we have a very robust team.
“They are going to operate and consult on April 14th, 15th, 16th, and 17th. It’s going to be a high-volume time, a very intensive time, but our team is prepared to be able to ensure that within this time frame, we’re able to meet our target,” Ogbonnaya said.
The mission aims to deliver at least 1,500 free medical consultations and up to 100 free surgeries. Two ophthalmologists will lead the eye surgeries at the Specialist Hospital.
Prof. Ogbonnaya commended Governor Alex Otti for creating the enabling environment and providing funding for logistics, while noting that ANPA is contributing skills and consumables.
“But the logistics and the other things that are required to make sure that this is a success, His Excellency has graciously approved funds for this to happen, and we want to thank him for doing that,” he said.
Beyond surgeries and consultations, the programme will include sexual and reproductive health education for young people, as well as training for 80 health workers on basic life support. It will also incorporate the Abia Healthcare Rebirth Initiative.
“There is another layer to this. ANPA has it as a policy, anywhere they go for outreach, they want to educate younger people on sexual and reproductive health.
“We’re going to train 80 health workers on basic life support. We need to champion a culture change that helps our health workers to embrace compassionate care, embrace the best practices, and then deliver the highest quality of healthcare,” ,” Ogbonnaya explained.
In addition, the Commissioner announced that the state’s rural emergency medical services would begin today, April 10, 2026, starting with the Maternal Mortality Reduction Innovations and Initiatives (MMRII) local government areas.
“As I leave here, we’re going to send three ambulances to the MMRII local governments,” he noted.
Contributing to the briefing, Dr. Uloaku Ukaegbu, Head of the Local Organising Team and Director General of ABSACA, described the mission as a well-planned exercise running from April 13 to 17.
“To be precise, from Tuesday next week to the end of next week, we’re going to be having that mission.
“We have been in communication with the team from America. In the last two months, every week, we have had delegations to ensure that everything that is going to happen next week is well-planned and well-thought-out,” ,” Dr. Ukaegbu said.
She added that free blood screening and other investigations are already underway, with blood provided for patients who need transfusions before surgery.
Young people, especially students from Abia State Polytechnic (Ogbonnaya Onu Poly), are being encouraged to attend for sexual and reproductive health education, and they will receive protective commodities and incentives.
“Like my Commissioner has said, it’s going to provide us an opportunity for skills transfer from those who are coming from the diaspora to our team,” Dr. Ukaegbu stated.
The outreach is expected to significantly boost access to quality healthcare for Abians while strengthening local capacity through knowledge exchange.