By: Adelowo Oladipo, Minna
The Niger State Contributory Health Agency-NiCare, the Niger State Agency for the Control of HIV/AIDS (NGSACA) in conjunction with HIV control Implementing partners and Support Groups of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs), has convened a stakeholders’ review meeting to assess progress on the enrolment of people living with HIV (PLHIV) into the state’s contributory health insurance scheme and to chart a path toward more sustainable coverage.
Welcoming the delegation, the representative of the Executive Secretary NiCare, Pharm. Abdul Musa, Director Health Planning Research and Statistics NiCare, reaffirmed the Agency’s mandate to provide affordable healthcare to every resident of the state.
In his remarks, the Director-General of NGSACA, Umar Y. Garba, commended NiCare for its continued collaboration and appealed to the Agency for further support, noting that a significant proportion of people living with HIV remain vulnerable.
The meeting reviewed outcomes of a slot allocation secured through a joint advocacy visit to NiCare in 2024 through which 1,000 enrolment slots were dedicated to vulnerable PLHIV in the state.
To date, the state has enrolled 650 PLHIV — representing 58 percent of the allocated slots — with 12 percent Service utilisation rate of enrollees i.e accessing at least one service and over 120 clinic visits recorded. Among enrollees who accessed care, 78 percent reported satisfaction with the services received.
Dr. Mike Onyilo, Director Prevention Treatment and Support NGSACA, in a presentation, outlined the objectives of the meeting and presented enrolment and utilization figures to stakeholders.
He further revealed that, in order to ensure continuity of coverage amid declining external funding support, there is a need to strengthen data tracking through simplified digital tools linked to ART service records; expand facility-based sensitization using NGSACA, SASCP, ART caregivers, and the Network of People Living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN), and pursue sustainability mechanisms, including the migration of partner-funded enrollees into the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).
Pharm. Abdul described the 12 percent utilization rate as a commendable achievement, while stressing the continued importance of National Identification Number (NIN) registration as a prerequisite for enrolment.
Pharm. Attahiru Shehu Malagi, Director of Operations and Business Development at NiCare, further disclosed that the enrolment of an additional 65,000 beneficiaries into the scheme is currently ongoing.
Stakeholders noted that progress on enrolling PLHIV from the informal, non-indigent population has been slower, constrained by a temporary HIV funding freeze and reduced partner support, and agreed on the need for stronger government ownership to sustain the initiative going forward. Key asks presented by NGSACA included: Migration of Implementing Partners-paid enrollee to BHCPF, Allocation of at least 2% BHCPF enrollment slots to PLWHA and One year entry support for non-indigentPLWHA.
Meanwhile,after extensive deliberations, the need to allocate more BHCPF enrollment slot to PLWHAs subject to management decision was agreed and different levels of engagement into the programme were also identified.
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