Alausa Inaugurates Committee for Military Medical College, Targets 2026 Admission

The Federal Government has inaugurated a Technical Working Group to accelerate the establishment of the Armed Forces College of Medicine and Health Sciences, with the first set of military medical cadets expected to commence academic activities in the 2026 academic session.

Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, inaugurated the committee in Abuja, describing the proposed institution as a strategic investment aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery within the Armed Forces and ensuring a steady supply of military-trained doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals.

He said the college would end the military’s long-standing reliance on civilian institutions for the training of its medical personnel by providing programmes tailored to the operational realities of military service.

According to the minister, the inauguration of the Technical Working Group marks the transition from policy approval to implementation following the Federal Government’s approval for the establishment of the institution.

“We cannot continue to leave the brave men and women who defend our nation without a sustainable system for training the healthcare professionals they require. Neither can we continue to expect the Armed Forces to compete with the rest of the country for the limited number of doctors graduating from our universities,” Alausa said.

He described the initiative as part of President Bola Tinubu’s broader agenda to expand access to medical education while addressing critical manpower shortages in the country’s health sector.

Alausa disclosed that annual admissions into Medicine and Dentistry had increased from about 5,000 before the current administration to 10,405 students, with the Federal Government targeting at least 20,000 admissions within the next two years through the accreditation of additional colleges of medicine.

He also said annual enrolment into nursing programmes had risen from about 28,000 to nearly 120,000 students nationwide, exceeding the administration’s target.

The minister commended the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria for maintaining standards that have continued to make Nigerian nurses globally competitive.

While noting that the government was expanding medical education generally, Alausa stressed that the Armed Forces required a specialised institution dedicated to producing healthcare professionals trained for military operations.

“This institution is not being established to compete with conventional universities. It is being established to make the Armed Forces self-sufficient in producing the healthcare professionals they require. Every programme should answer one simple question. Does the Armed Forces need it? If the answer is yes, then it should be prioritised,” he said.

He urged the Technical Working Group to give priority to specialised courses such as Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy and other disciplines that support the treatment and rehabilitation of personnel recovering from combat-related injuries.

The minister said the committee comprises representatives of the Federal Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Defence, the National Universities Commission (NUC), the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN), the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) and other strategic institutions.

According to him, the committee will develop the academic curriculum, harmonise academic and military training, coordinate accreditation, facilitate the appointment of key academic personnel and work with the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to ensure the successful commencement of admissions in the 2026 academic session.

He disclosed that he had already engaged the JAMB Registrar to include the college on the admissions portal, while directing the NUC to fast-track resource verification and accreditation processes to enable the admission of the pioneer medical cadets next year.

Providing an update on preparations, the Director-General of the Ministry of Defence Health Implementation Programme and Chairman of the Technical Working Group, Major General Idris Babatunde Solebo, said the proposed college was being modelled after the Uniformed Services University in the United States.

He explained that students would undergo integrated academic and military training from admission to graduation, equipping them with competencies in battlefield medicine, Tactical Combat Casualty Care and other specialised military medical skills.

Solebo said the college would be located at the Nigerian Army Reference Hospital, Kaduna, where existing infrastructure would support its immediate take-off.

He also disclosed that the Armed Forces currently face an estimated 93 per cent deficit in medical personnel, making the establishment of the institution critical to strengthening military healthcare and ensuring a sustainable pipeline of trained professionals.

Alausa thanked the Minister of Defence and the Minister of State for Defence for supporting the initiative and expressed confidence that the Technical Working Group would complete its assignment in time for the college to admit its pioneer military medical cadets during the 2026 academic session.