The Kano State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency (KSCHMA) says health insurance enrolment in the state has grown by 87.6 per cent in two years, rising from 497,262 beneficiaries in 2023 to 933,014 in 2025.
The Executive Secretary of the agency, Dr Rahila Muktar, disclosed this on Friday in Kano during a press briefing to mark the 2025 Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day.
Muktar said the expansion reflects the state government’s commitment to affordable and quality healthcare through the Kano State Contributory Health Scheme, in line with this year’s UHC theme, “Unaffordable Health Costs: We Are Sick of It!”
She attributed the progress to policies implemented under Governor Abba Yusuf’s administration, noting that since assuming office in June 2023, the agency has focused on aggressive enrolment expansion and financial protection for residents.
According to her, the state-funded Vulnerable Group Programme recorded a 935 per cent increase in enrolment, from 4,903 to 50,745 beneficiaries, supported by the Kano State Health Trust Fund. The Basic Health Care Provision Fund also grew by 215 per cent, expanding coverage from 108,664 to 342,515 enrollees.
Muktar said the formal sector recorded a 40 per cent rise to 537,914 beneficiaries, while enrolment in the informal sector increased sharply from 148 to 1,840.
She said the scheme currently supports over 145,000 pregnant women, 124,000 children under five, 46,000 persons living with disabilities, and thousands of residents with chronic conditions, including HIV and sickle cell disease, as well as inmates in correctional facilities.
The executive secretary added that the agency had strengthened partnerships with key health institutions and introduced initiatives such as a Zakat and Waqf Programme to support vulnerable groups, alongside expanded coverage for indigent patients under the Abba Care Programme.
She also said KSCHMA had upgraded its call centre, digitised services at primary healthcare centres, and trained more than 1,000 healthcare providers across 614 facilities to improve service delivery.
Activities to mark the 2025 UHC Day in Kano, she said, include the distribution of relief items to vulnerable groups and the rollout of informal sector enrolment across the state.
