By Grace Damulak
Harnessing the collective strength of government and development partners has been identified as key to ensuring that no one is left behind in accessing quality healthcare without financial hardship.
The Plateau State Coordinator of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Magaji Izang, stated this at an event to mark this year’s World Health Day in Jos.
The event, themed “Together for Health, Stand with Science: Harnessing Government and Development Partner’s Efforts in Achieving Universal Health Coverage in Plateau State.” was organised by the Association of Public Health Physicians in collaboration with the Plateau State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency.
Universal Health Coverage ensures that all people have access to needed quality health services, ranging from provision to treatment and rehabilitation without suffering financial hardship.
It remains a key development goal aimed at improving population health and reducing poverty
Delivering a keynote address, Dr MAGAJI Izang said the Plateau State Government has shown strong political will towards achieving Universal Health Coverage through legislative backing of the state health insurance scheme, PLASCHEMA, establishment of other health management structures, and implementation of the Healthcare Under One Roof policy.
He also acknowledged the contributions of development partners in the areas of technical support, funding, and capacity building for health workers.
Dr. Izang, however, identified challenges affecting the scheme to include shortage of manpower, security challenges affecting service delivery, limited community awareness and enrollment in insurance scheme.
He called for improved health financing, better coordination among partners, increased workforce capacity, wider coverage, and enhanced security collaboration, especially in rural communities.
In a remark, the Director General of PLASCHEMA, Dr. Kwande Dawal, emphasised the need for evidence-based programming, noting that data-driven decisions are critical to effective healthcare delivery.
He further explained that Universal Health Coverage, goes beyond access to healthcare services as it includes equity, quality service delivery, and sustainable health financing and called on citizens to ensure enrollment.
Also, the Plateau State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Nicholas Baamlong, urged residents to embrace the state health insurance scheme to improve access to quality healthcare.
Others who spoke at the event also called for sustained advocacy to boost enrollment in PLASCHEMA.
Edited by Karen keyen
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