The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) says it has surpassed its 2025 target with more than 21 million Nigerians now enroled in the health insurance schemes nationwide.
Dr Kelechi Ohiri, the Director-General of NHIA, made this known on Thursday in Abuja during a stakeholder engagement meeting with self-financing government agencies.
The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN), reports that the meeting, which brought together desk officers and focal persons from self-paying Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), aimed to strengthen collaboration and deepen understanding of the health insurance system.
Ohiri, who was represented by Mr Nuhu Ajodi, the Director of Formal Sector Department in the agency, said that under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the agency has achieved significant progress in expanding coverage and improving access to quality healthcare.
“We have moved from below 12 million enrolees to over 21 million, surpassing the presidential target for 2025,” she said.
She said the reforms under the National Health Insurance Authority Act 2022 have made health insurance mandatory for all Nigerians and have repositioned the Authority to deliver on its mandate more effectively.
Ohiri added that the engagement with self-paying agencies was part of efforts to familiarise focal persons with NHIA’s processes, ensure transparency in premium computation, and strengthen operational efficiency.
“Our desk officers are NHIA ambassadors in their organisations. They are the first point of contact when enrollees face challenges and must be well equipped to respond,” she said.
According to her, the Authority’s week-long stakeholder engagements will also cover Treasury-funded agencies and the organised private sector to further expand health coverage nationwide.
She said that NHIA is strengthening its collaboration with self-paying government agencies to enhance transparency, efficiency, and stakeholder understanding of Nigeria’s health insurance system.
The director-general said the meeting aimed to familiarise NHIA desk officers and focal persons across self-paying agencies with the Authority’s operations, appreciate their roles in the health insurance ecosystem, and improve collaboration.
“Today’s meeting is to help us know one another, the NHIA team, the focal persons, and desk officers in different agencies, and to understand how the roles we each play contribute to the broader health insurance system,” she said.
According to him, participants were also expected to gain insight into how premiums are determined, including the rates and criteria used in computing contributions based on staff strength and salary levels.
“This will promote transparency and help agencies plan and project their yearly budgets for remittance to NHIA to sustain coverage,”.
She said the meeting also seeks to deepen participants’ understanding of the Authority’s mandate, legal framework, and ongoing reforms under the NHIA Act 2022, which makes health insurance mandatory for all Nigerians.
She explained that the reforms are designed to improve efficiency, ensure wider coverage, and enhance the quality of care provided to enrollees.
“Our desk officers are NHIA ambassadors in their respective organisations. They are the first point of contact when issues arise regarding staff healthcare. So, they must be well equipped to handle and escalate challenges effectively,” she said.
She said the engagement will help strengthen the relationship between NHIA and self-paying agencies by improving communication, operational efficiency, and knowledge-sharing.
“The overall goal is to build stronger partnerships and ensure that every eligible Nigerian under self-paying agencies has uninterrupted access to quality healthcare,” she said.
NAN report that the meeting is part of a week-long stakeholder engagement series that will also feature sessions with Treasury-funded agencies and the organised private sector, as part of efforts to deepen national health insurance coverage.
