The Lagos State Government has launched a fresh enrolment campaign to provide vulnerable residents in Badagry Division with one year of free health insurance under the ILERA EKO scheme, as part of efforts to expand access to affordable healthcare.
The two-day EKO Social Health Alliance Community Storm, organised by the Lagos State Health Management Agency in partnership with Health District V and the DIDE Foundation, was flagged off at Posukoh Ward in Badagry.
Speaking at the event, the Permanent Secretary of LASHMA, Emmanuella Zamba, said the state’s health insurance programme is now compulsory for all Lagos residents, regardless of their economic status.
She explained that enrollees under the ILERA EKO scheme would have access to a wide range of healthcare services, including medical consultations, treatment for acute and chronic illnesses, maternal care, emergency services, surgeries and essential medicines.
According to Zamba, the outreach is intended to bring health insurance closer to vulnerable communities by registering eligible residents at no cost for one year.
She also disclosed that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had increased the state’s Equity Fund for vulnerable enrolment from ₦1 billion to ₦3 billion and approved the allocation of one per cent of the state’s Consolidated Revenue Fund to sustain the initiative.
The permanent secretary advised beneficiaries to seek medical attention at health facilities whenever they fall ill instead of relying on self-medication.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary of Health District V, Oladapo Ashiyanbi, said residents participating in the outreach would benefit from additional medical services, including child immunisation, eye examinations, tuberculosis screening, dental care and free registration for the health insurance scheme.
Chairman of Olorunda Local Council Development Area, Ajose Kumayon, said the council had donated a boat to improve healthcare access for residents of the Ojogun riverine community and announced plans to provide two more boats.
The Possu of Badagry Kingdom, Chief Sulaimon Iroko, described the initiative as a welcome intervention, noting that the rising cost of medical care had made hospital treatment difficult for many people.
He encouraged eligible residents to enrol in the programme, adding that he had personally benefited from the ILERA EKO scheme.
LASHMA said vulnerable residents in six of Badagry’s 10 wards, including the Ojogun riverine community, have already been enrolled, while registration in the remaining wards will continue.
The outreach also included the distribution of free WAEC examination forms to secondary school students in the benefiting communities through the DIDE Foundation.
