Niger gov decries low patronage of state contributory healthcare scheme

Niger State governor, Alhaji  Abubakar Sani Bello, has decried the low level patronage  of   the people  into the state’s Contributory Healthcare Scheme.

The  governor stated this while receiving a report/presentation of the end of year review and performance of the state’s Primary Healthcare Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The governor, who blamed the low level of patronage of the scheme  on lack of adequate awareness, also  noted that people are somewhat cynical because they do not have confidence in the system because, when they pay for premium services they don’t get value for their money.

He, however, expressed  the hope that when people begin to enjoy the benefits, more people  will register, adding that the whole scheme is relatively new to the people, unlike elsewhere in the world where it is fully operational and even mandatory.

The governor expressed the  hope that the health insurance scheme would pick up in the state, stressing that it was the only way that the hospitals  could be properly maintained  in the long term.

The governor  acknowledged that the health sector requires huge investment and lots of resources, stressing that the solution is to ensure that the system fully integrates the healthcare system and fund it adequately.

He assured that the state government would continue to engage and fulfill its obligations to development partners and donors, especially with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Earlier, the  Commissioner  for Health and Hospital Services, Dr Mohammed Makusidi, had enumerated the  achievements and successes recorded by the state government through the partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

In his presentation, the executive director of the state’s Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr Ibrahim Dangana,    corroborated the achievements of the state government by the  commissioner, stressing that government took a giant stride by signing the MoU.

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