Access Bank (www.AccessBankplc.com) and GE Healthcare (www.GEHealthcare.com) are to provide sustainable healthcare equipment financing to private healthcare providers; The partnership will help the private healthcare providers to deliver access to affordable healthcare services.
GE Healthcare and Access Bank Nigeria have entered into a partnership to provide Nigeria’s Private Healthcare Providers with equipment financing. Under the partnership, borrowers will be able to secure loans of up to $800,000 negotiable, based on the customer requirement.
Access Bank will provide access to loans for eligible healthcare providers, while GE Healthcare will support the program through provision of GE healthcare equipment and technical support. The equipment under the partnership scope include Imaging Solutions including Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Computed Tomography (CT), Ultrasound Machines and Life Care Solutions. Borrowers which qualify for loans include private healthcare providers such as hospitals, clinics, diagnostic centres and other private practices offering a broad array of services.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Mr. Eyong Ebai, General Manager for GE Healthcare West, Central & French Sub-Saharan Africa said, “We are committed to invest in Public and Private Partnerships that innovate new delivery models that will improve access to affordable and quality patient outcomes, as we progress towards Universal Healthcare Coverage (UHC) in Nigeria. Our partnership with Access Bank will help lift the financial burden off the healthcare providers.”
Earlier this year, GE Healthcare rolled out a similar initiative in Kenya (https://bit.ly/2YzEOYd) in partnership with Medical Credit Fund to provide Small and Medium Enterprises (SMES) with financing for healthcare equipment.
“There is a need to provide innovative financing models for healthcare providers especially in the private sector, who currently face challenges accessing financing for purchase of healthcare equipment due to the risk associated with the business. As a financing institution, we are committed to provide financing at both the health-service-provider level and at health-service-consumer levels to ensure that the people of Nigeria have all they need to live healthy lives.” Said Mr. Herbert Wigwe, CEO Access Bank.
Access Bank was earlier this year recognized (https://bit.ly/32SX4Lj) for the second time as the ‘Outstanding Healthcare SME-Friendly Bank of the Year’ at the Nigerian Healthcare Excellence Award (NHEA) 2019.
The need to provide affordable healthcare in Nigeria is key to the development of the Nigerian Healthcare sector. Even as the World Health Organisation has identified UHC as a unifying concept and goal for the Government as they strengthen their health systems and discharge their obligations under the right to health. GE Healthcare and Access bank scheme was therefore born out of the necessity to provide the needed support to the Nigerian Healthcare environs, by providing healthcare finance at affordable rates and longer tenor.
About Access Bank:
Access Bank Plc. (www.AccessBankplc.com) is a leading full-service commercial Bank operating through a network of 592 branches and service outlets, spanning three continents, 12 countries and 29 million customers. The Bank employs 28,000 people in its operations in Nigeria and has subsidiaries in Sub-Saharan Africa and the United Kingdom, with representative offices in China, Lebanon, India and the UAE. Listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange since 1998, Access Bank is a diversified financial institution which combines a strong retail customer franchise and digital platform with deep corporate banking expertise and proven risk management and capital management capabilities. The Bank serves its various markets through four business segments: Retail, Business, Commercial and Corporate. The Bank has over 900,000 shareholders (including several Nigerian and International Institutional Investors) and has enjoyed what is arguably Africa’s most successful banking growth trajectory in the last twelve years. Following its merger with Diamond Bank in March 2019, Access Bank became one of Africa’s largest retail banks by retail customer base. Visit www.AccessBankplc.com for more information.
About GE Healthcare:
GE Healthcare (www.GEHealthcare.com) is the $19,8 billion healthcare business of GE. As a leading provider of medical imaging, monitoring, biomanufacturing, and cell and gene therapy technologies, GE Healthcare enables precision health in diagnostics, therapeutics and monitoring through intelligent devices, data analytics, applications and services. With over 100 years of experience in the healthcare industry and more than 50,000 employees globally, the company helps improve outcomes more efficiently for patients, healthcare providers, researchers and life sciences companies around the world.
