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SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF HEALTH CARE FACILITIES IN SOKOTO STATE: A GEOGRAPHICAL PERSPECTIVE
Mustapha Sani

ABSTRACT
The importance of healthcare facilities to human life cannot be over emphasized. Health care is the most basic of all services that determine all aspects of developments. Governments at all levels are making gigantic efforts, in providing healthcare facilities for general wellbeing of its citizens. However, despite their efforts, there are teeming number of citizens who do not have access to good healthcare services especially in the rural areas, for these reasons therefore, this paper analyzes the geographical distributions of healthcare facilities in Sokoto State for the purpose of achieving sustainable development. The paper examines the spatial distribution of healthcare facilities in the 23 Local Government Areas of the State, and the objectives are to identify the trends of developments in modern healthcare institutions and the distributions of health personnel in relation to the population of each settlement in the state. Quantitative method was used in analyzing the data generated from Ministry of Health, National Population Commission and Budget and Economic Planning. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistical techniques. The paper concluded that there was unequal provision and distribution of healthcare facilities across the state as well as the concentration of healthcare facilities in urban areas. Similarly the paper recommended that provision and distribution of health facilities be evenly distributed across the state and government should comply with the guidelines on minimum standard of healthcare facilities provided by NPHCPA.


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