Over 400,000 residents of Kaduna have been enrolled into the state’s contributory health scheme, Aliyu Saidu, the Director-General of Kaduna State Contributory Health Management Agency said.

Mr. Saidu disclosed this on Monday, during a one-day orientation workshop for social and community mobilisers for the scheme in Kaduna.

He said the 400,000 prospective beneficiaries represented five percent of the population of the state.

Mr. Saidu said the health scheme targeted 800,000, about 10 percent of the state population in 2020, but achieved only five percent due to COVID-19 pandemic.

He explained that the enrollment, which cut across the three senatorial districts of the state, included enrollees from the formal, informal sector and the vulnerable.

The official said the workshop was also taking place simultaneously in the three senatorial zones of the state.

He said it was meant to sensitise social and community mobilisers on the agency’s work plan modalities to enrol residents in the scheme.

According to him, the health scheme wishes to achieve coverage of 20 percent of the population this year and keep growing by engaging community mobilisers for the enrollment.

“We are engaging the community mobilisers so they can help in the sensitisation and reaching out to residents on the importance of the health scheme.

“With the assistance of the community mobilisers, identification/enrollment exercise will record  huge success in the state,” he said.

The director-general urged the participants to work hard and support the health scheme for better service delivery.

“We are having the challenges of reaching out to the informal sector and that’s why we are engaging you,” he said.

Mr. Saidu appealed to the residents to enroll in the health scheme for good service delivery.

“You will only put N10,680 for registration and it will save you a lot because you have a lot of benefits from the services.

“The services include emergency care, antenatal care, deliveries, neonatal care, surgical services, internal medicine, postnatal care and gynaecological care, .

“Others are; care for childhood illnesses, chronic disease management, ophthalmic care, family planning, immunisation, blood transfusion, dental care, X-ray services and laboratory services,” he stated.