The federal government announced that health insurance enrollment in Nigeria has reached approximately 20 million people, with a goal of expanding this to 44 million by 2030.
Muhammad Pate, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, revealed in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that in 2024 alone, the country added over 2.4 million new enrollees, bringing total coverage to about 20 million.
He linked the progress to President Bola Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda and the broader push for universal health coverage.
According to the statement:
- Out-of-pocket expenditure still accounts for roughly 70 % of total health spending, making insurance expansion a critical policy priority.
- Social health insurance schemes represent about 90 % of all enrollments nationwide.
- The capitation fee for enrollees has been doubled from ₦750 to ₦1,450, and fee-for-service rates have been raised by 380 % based on actuarial evidence.
- A “One Hour Referral Authorization Code” has been introduced to accelerate patient transfer from primary to specialist care.
- The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has been directed to begin covert “mystery shopping” of health-care facilities to ensure insured Nigerians are not denied prompt and dignified care.
- Visits to hospitals rose from fewer than 10 million in all of 2023 to over 46 million by the second quarter of 2025 — underscoring growing service utilisation under the reforms.
- Nearly 120,000 health workers have been trained since 2023, and approximately 2,500 doctors, nurses, midwives and community health extension workers recruited. Additionally, 4,000 health personnel have been added in federal tertiary hospitals in the past 16 months.
Minister Pate remarked:
“This people-centred approach defines the comprehensive reforms now reshaping our health sector… our record-breaking progress in national health insurance enrollment is aligning demand with Nigeria’s rapidly expanding supply of human resources and infrastructure.”
He further assured that the government will continue to modernise infrastructure, strengthen the health-care workforce and sustain reforms until “every Nigerian is covered and cared for.”
This major step in expanding access to health insurance reflects the administration’s commitment to reducing the financial burden of health care on Nigerian households and improving service quality across the system.
