Health Ministry Enforces Retirement for Long-Serving Directors

The Nigerian Ministry of Health has issued a memo mandating the immediate retirement of directors who have served in their roles for a minimum of eight years. This directive, obtained on Tuesday in Abuja, follows a federal government decision to enforce tenure limits as part of a broader policy aimed at civil service reform.

The memo, signed by Tetshoma Dafeta, the Director of the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, instructs heads of agencies and parastatals to ensure compliance. Affected directors are required to hand over official documents and assets without delay, and their salaries will cease beyond their official retirement dates.

The Ministry will monitor compliance, and the Office of the Head of Civil Service will conduct checks to ensure adherence to the directive. This move aligns with the introduction of revised public service rules approved by the Federal Executive Council in 2021, which established a four-year tenure limit for permanent secretaries and an eight-year limit for directors of equivalent rank.