THE Kano State Private Health Institutions Management Agency (PHIMA) has shut down 37 private hospitals and other healthcare facilities across the state over various regulatory violations in the past 18 months.
News Point Nigeria reports that 16 of the facilities were closed in 2025, while another 21 were shut down between January and July 2026 for failing to comply with government regulations guiding private healthcare service delivery in the state.
The Acting Director-General of PHIMA, Hajiya Khadija Sa’id, disclosed this while explaining the agency’s regulatory activities and efforts to improve standards in the private healthcare sector.
She said more than 1,405 private health facilities are currently registered with PHIMA across Kano State, comprising clinics, polyclinics, hospitals, specialist hospitals, nursing homes, clinic/maternity centres and maternity hospitals.
According to her, PHIMA is responsible for facilitating, regulating and supervising healthcare services provided by private health institutions, with the authority to sanction or close facilities found to be operating in violation of established government regulations.
Khadija explained that the agency conducts routine and supportive supervision to ensure compliance and protect patients from substandard healthcare services.
She said routine supervision is carried out by teams comprising PHIMA officials and ad hoc personnel with relevant medical experience, while supportive supervision involves other stakeholders, including specialist doctors, lawyers, representatives of the state Ministry of Health, security agencies and community leaders.
The PHIMA boss stressed that each category of private healthcare facility has a clearly defined scope of services it is authorised to provide, warning operators against exceeding the limits of their licences.
She noted that a clinic, for instance, could not lawfully offer services designated for a polyclinic or hospital without the necessary approval and facilities.
“Our concern is to ensure good service delivery to the people. We do not want a situation where the health of the people will be compromised,” she said.
Khadija also disclosed that the agency would soon upload updated information on all registered private health institutions on its newly designed website as part of efforts to strengthen regulation and monitoring.
She said the platform, to be managed by PHIMA’s database unit, would provide government with timely and reliable information on private healthcare facilities operating across the state.
According to her, the database would capture critical information, including daily patient attendance at private hospitals, maternal mortality and infectious diseases affecting communities.
She said access to accurate and up-to-date data would enable the government to identify emerging health challenges early and take appropriate measures to address them.
The Acting Director-General added that PHIMA regularly organises capacity-building workshops for its staff and owners of private health institutions to familiarise them with government guidelines, regulations and policies governing the operation of private healthcare facilities.
She said the agency would continue to strengthen supervision and enforcement to ensure that private healthcare providers operate within approved standards and deliver safe and quality services to residents of Kano State.