FG expands health insurance coverage to 24m Nigerians

…Revitalises 3,526 PHCs, records over 20% drop in maternal deaths …Tinubu administration fulfils 41 health sector commitments — Pate By Chidinma Chukwu, Abuja The Federal Government has expanded health insurance coverage from 16 million to 24 million Nigerians, revitalised 3,526 primary healthcare centres (PHCs) and recorded a reduction of more than 20 per cent in maternal deaths arising from obstetric emergencies in government-supported facilities over the past three years.

The government also said the President Bola Tinubu administration had fulfilled all 41 performance commitments set for the health sector at the beginning of his tenure. The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the third Nigeria Health Sector-Wide Joint Annual Review (JAR), themed, “Make the Data Count”.

Pate attributed the achievements to reforms under the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative and the Health Sector Strategic Blueprint, which focus on strengthening healthcare governance, improving population health, expanding health financing, promoting local production of medical supplies and enhancing health security. According to him, the progress reflects the collective efforts of federal and state governments, development partners and other stakeholders.

He said, “At the beginning of this administration, Mr President set performance commitments for the health sector. I am pleased to report that we have achieved all 41 commitments. These results reflect work across the federation and the institutions represented here today.” The minister disclosed that, for the third consecutive year, all states and more than 8,000 facilities supported by the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) had prepared plans for the coming year, aligned with budget priorities.

He said cumulative BHCPF releases since 2019 had reached approximately ₦422.3bn as of October 2026, with ₦323.6bn disbursed to the fund’s gateways, including ₦249.5bn under the Tinubu administration. Pate added that the government had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to strengthen the tracking of the funds and promote accountability.

On health insurance, he said coverage had increased from approximately 16 million to 24 million Nigerians within three years, representing eight million additional enrollees. On primary healthcare delivery, the minister said 3,526 centres had been revitalised in collaboration with state governments and development partners, while work was ongoing on another 900 facilities.

He also disclosed that 19,758 skilled birth attendants had been recruited across 22 states, alongside 4,747 community health workers in 10 states, while 78,054 frontline health workers had received training. According to him, the interventions had improved access to maternal and newborn healthcare, particularly in local government areas covered by the Maternal and Newborn Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative (MAMII).

He said 91 per cent of BHCPF-supported facilities in MAMII local government areas now had at least two midwives or community health extension workers, compared with 12 per cent at the beginning of the initiative. He added that 99 per cent of the facilities in the areas were connected to emergency referral systems. Providing further details on healthcare outcomes, Pate said skilled deliveries in BHCPF-supported facilities increased from 4.8 million in 2023 to 7.9 million in 2026, while women completing at least four antenatal care visits rose from six million to 8.7 million.

Outpatient visits also increased from 32.4 million to 43 million, while the number of children receiving the third dose of the pentavalent vaccine doubled from 1.2 million to 2.4 million within one year. On immunisation, the minister said more than 100 million children had received measles and rubella vaccines, while over 18 million girls had been vaccinated against the human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes cervical cancer.

He further disclosed that the government’s emergency maternal healthcare intervention had provided nearly 100,000 services, including 80,900 Caesarean sections, 9,100 newborn services and more than 6,000 fistula repairs. On the impact of the intervention, Pate said deaths arising from obstetric emergencies had declined by more than one-fifth in participating facilities providing emergency services.

He added that BHCPF-supported facilities in MAMII areas recorded an approximately 60 per cent reduction in maternal case fatality between 2024 and 2026. “These are some of the highest-risk maternal cases, and the results demonstrate the importance of ensuring that women have access to timely and affordable emergency care,” he said. The minister also highlighted interventions to reduce the cost of treating critical illnesses, disclosing that dialysis costs had been reduced by almost 80 per cent, benefiting