The Right to Health and Universal Health Coverage in Kwara State: A Human Rights Audit

This study conducts a human rights audit of universal health coverage (UHC) in Kwara State, North Central Nigeria, examining the extent to which the state's health system fulfills obligations under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. The right to the highest attainable standard of health, as articulated in General Comment No. 14 of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, requires states to ensure availability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality of health services. Kwara State's health system is examined against these four dimensions using both primary and secondary data. Primary data are collected through structured interviews with patients, healthcare workers, and officials from the Kwara State Ministry of Health and the State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency. Secondary data draw on the National Health Facility Survey, federal health budgetary reports, and civil society assessments. Findings reveal systemic underfunding, persistent rural-urban disparities in facility availability, and high out-of-pocket costs that effectively exclude low-income populations from quality care. The study argues that the failure to progressively realize the right to health violates Nigeria's treaty commitments and domestic constitutional obligations. Recommendations include increased health budget allocations, expansion of the National Health Insurance Authority's coverage, and rural health infrastructure investment. Keywords: right to health, universal health coverage, Kwara State, ICESCR, health equity.