Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has inaugurated the Edo Healthcare Improvement Programme (HIP) Advisory and Steering Committee, charging members to ensure sustainability of the programme.
Speaking at the inauguration of the committee at Government House in Benin City, the state capital, the governor said, “Our emphasis is on the sustainability of the programme because we want to have a healthcare system that goes on forever within the limits of financial, social and environmental resources.”
He charged members of the Advisory and Steering Committee to come up with modalities on how the challenges confronting the state’s health sector could be tackled, drawing from their professional expertise.
“We have so many issues to deal with in our healthcare system, which include the payment for healthcare services, data gathering mechanism, getting Universal Health Coverage and health regulations,” he noted.
He said the Edo HIP Programme should be structured in such a way that would allow for diversity and flexibility to accommodate all persons irrespective of status, level of income and location.
He also charged the committee to come up with modalities to get people to key into the programme and improve access to qualitative healthcare.
“Healthcare is not cheap because medical equipment is expensive. So, if we need quality healthcare service, we have to get people to pay for it.”
The Edo HIP Advisory and Steering Committee is made up of three sub-committees, namely – Primary Health Care Advisory Committee, chaired by Julie Erhabor; the Secondary Health Care Advisory Committee, chaired by Patrick Okundia, and the Health Financing Advisory Committee, chaired by Alex Okoh.
Responding on behalf of the Edo-HIP Advisory and Steering Committee members, Erhabor thanked the governor for the opportunity given them to serve.
She also assured of the committee members’ commitment to live up to the confidence reposed in them.
