The Federal Government on Thursday in Abuja, inaugurated Project STRAWN, a workforce-readiness initiative aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s radiotherapy workforce pipeline and improving cancer treatment delivery.
Newsextra24 reports that Strengthening Radiation Therapy Workforce in Nigeria (STRAWN) is an initiative led by the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Enugu, and OncoClinics Africa, with support from Siemens Healthineers.
It is being implemented in collaboration with the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (RRBN), Association of Clinical and Radiation Oncologists in Nigeria (ARCON) and National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT).
Others are the Nigerian Association of Medical Physicists (NAMP), and National Cancer Control Programme Technical Working Group (NCCP TWG).
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, commended the project, describing it as timely.
”It is a timely and important contribution to Nigeria’s cancer-control priorities, particularly its focus on workforce development, regulated progression, patient safety, and improved returns on national radiotherapy investments”.
The minister noted the importance of aligning the initiative with national policy, regulatory standards, and the broader health-sector reform agenda.
He also urged the project team to incorporate sustainability and retention measures to discourage migration of trained personnel after certification.
Stakeholders at the presentation said Nigeria currently has fewer than 80 licensed radiotherapy professionals serving approximately 12 operational linear accelerators nationwide.
They noted that the workforce shortage remains a major constraint to maximising recent investments in cancer treatment infrastructure.
The Principal Investigator of Project STRAWN, Dr Nwamaka Lasebikan, said the programme was designed as a structured pathway into the regulated radiotherapy workforce.
“Project STRAWN is not a shortcut around regulation; it is a governed bridge into the regulated workforce pipeline.
“Nigeria is investing in radiotherapy infrastructure, but machines do not treat patients by themselves.
“We need a competent, supervised, quality-conscious workforce that can support safe service delivery today while progressing into full certification tomorrow,” she said.
Lasebikan said the initiative has two components.
They include an Advanced Training Programme for Certified Therapy Radiographers and a six-month competency-based bridge programme for fresh radiography graduates.
According to her, the bridge programme combines classroom teaching, supervised clinical exposure, competency assessment, patient communication training and quality assurance practices.
She explained that STRAWN neither replaces statutory board certification nor confers independent therapy radiographer status on participants.
Rather, it is intended to improve practical readiness and support progression into existing certification pathways.
The Chief Executive Officer of OncoClinics Africa, Mr Zahi El Khatib, said experience from cancer care delivery had shown that infrastructure, technology and workforce development must advance together.
“At OncoClinics Africa, our experience has shown that infrastructure, technology and clinical excellence must move together.
“Project STRAWN addresses one of the most urgent constraints in cancer care: the workforce gap.
“We are proud to support a model that is practical, supervised, nationally relevant and aligned with the long-term strengthening of Nigeria’s oncology workforce,” he said.
Also speaking, the Chief Medical Director of UNTH, Prof. Obinna Onodugo, described the initiative as a strategic partnership for building local capacity.
“UNTH is committed to serving as a national platform for oncology service delivery, training, research and health-system strengthening.
“Project STRAWN reflects the kind of institutional partnership Nigeria needs; one that protects standards, builds local capacity, supports young professionals and improves patient access to quality cancer care,” he said.
The Director, Training Institute, RRBN, Dr Malachy Ejimofor, reaffirmed the board’s commitment to structured professional development in radiography.
Ejimofor said curriculum alignment, supervision, documentation, competency assessment and clearly defined progression pathways would remain central to the programme.
The Vice President of ARCON, Dr Biyi Olusegun, emphasised the urgency of expanding Nigeria’s radiotherapy workforce.
Olusegun said radiation and clinical oncologists relied heavily on radiotherapy professionals to meet growing demand for cancer treatment services.
According to the stakeholders, the project would initially be implemented through UNTH and OncoClinics Africa before expanding to training hubs across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones.
They expressed optimism that the initiative would reduce workforce bottlenecks and improve access to safe, timely and quality-assured radiotherapy services nationwide.
Newsextra24 reports that Nigeria records more than 120,000 new cancer cases annually and experts say strengthening the radiotherapy workforce is critical to improving access to treatment and achieving the objectives of NCCP.
