From Benjamin Babine, Abuja
Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has called for collaboration between the agency and the Association of Hospital And Administrative Pharmacists of Nigeria (AHAPN) to help in the implementation of Employee’s Compensation Scheme (ECS).
NSITF acting Managing Director, Kelly Nwagha, made the call as he received a delegation, led by AHAPN, Abuja chapter President, Abubakar Danraka, at the NSITF headquarters in Abuja.
Nwagha drew attention to the non-implementation of the communiqué reached between the Pharmacist Council of Nigeria and the NSITF, which he said would have helped more pharmacists in their work places and ensured greater productivity.
“Pharmacist Council of Nigeria, in which Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria has substantial representation, is expected from that communiqué to enrol pharmacy practitioners en masse into the ECS, which compensates employees for work-related injuries, diseases and deaths,” he said.
The practitioners, include community pharmacists, patent and proprietary medicine dealers and employees of pharmaceutical firms.
He said: “It is unfortunate that up till this moment that communiqué is yet to be activated,” and urged the delegation to use its position to reactivate the communiqué for the benefit of employers and the employees in the pharmaceutical sector.
The managing director disclosed the agency had paid over N4 billion in compensation to subscribers of the ECS since the fund was given legal backing in 2010, out of which about N1 billion was paid in 2020 alone.
Danraka congratulated Nwagha on his appointment as the acting managing director of NSITF, describing him as one of the icons of the AHAPN, even as he sought collaboration with the fund in conducting periodic training and workshops of pharmaceutical staff.