The Edo State Health Insurance Commission (EDOHIC) has reinforced its resolve to enhance healthcare delivery across the state, placing renewed emphasis on data integrity, accountability, and improved service efficiency at the Primary Healthcare level.

The meeting, which was held at the Commission’s headquarters in Benin City on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, convened Medical Officers of Health (MOHs), Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Officers, and other critical stakeholders from the 18 Local Government Areas.

The engagement served as a strategic platform to assess performance, interrogate existing operational gaps, and align stakeholders on priority actions required to drive improved health outcomes across the state.

In her welcome address, the Director-General of EDOHIC, Dr (Mrs) Augusta Ikpea-Enaholo,
commended participants for their sustained commitment to advancing healthcare delivery at the grassroots, noting with satisfaction the marked improvement in supervisory visits across Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs).

She, however, expressed grave concern over persistent deficiencies in data quality, underscoring the centrality of accurate and timely data to effective planning, policy formulation, and equitable service delivery.

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“Data remains the backbone of our operations. It is indispensable for informed decision-making, resource allocation, and ensuring that healthcare services are delivered efficiently to the most vulnerable populations,” she stated.

The Director-General further situated these efforts within the broader framework of the Senator Monday Okpebholo’s led Edo State Government’s SHINE Agenda, reiterating that strengthening health systems and expanding access to quality care remain pivotal to achieving sustainable development outcomes.

She expressed appreciation to all stakeholders for their active participation and reaffirmed the Commission’s unwavering commitment to providing the necessary support to strengthen system performance.

Ikpea-Enaholo emphasized that sustained collaboration, transparency, and accountability remain indispensable to the success of the state’s health insurance scheme, noting that the ultimate objective is to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare for all residents of Edo State.

Providing a comprehensive review of performance across the second, third, and fourth quarters of 2025, the Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Dr. Owen Omorogbe highlighted key intervention programmes, including the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF) and the State Equity Programme.

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He outlined critical performance indicators such as business plan submissions, supervisory activities, service utilization, implementation of improvement plans, and, notably, data reporting standards.

While acknowledging incremental progress in certain LGAs, Dr. Omorogbe identified data quality as a persistent systemic challenge, emphasizing that both state and national health planning frameworks are heavily dependent on the credibility of submitted data.

He further elucidated the Commission’s adoption of a hybrid data transmission model, integrating both digital and manual processes, and referenced the National Health Insurance Authority’s directive mandating data submission within a two-week timeframe.

Among the key impediments identified were poor image quality in digital submissions, illegible documentation, inaccuracies and omissions in data fields, delayed reporting, and the physical deterioration of reporting tools.

Dr. Omorogbe urged stakeholders to institutionalize best practices in data management and to actively engage in ongoing capacity-building initiatives, including structured training for Officers-in-Charge (OICs) on standardized reporting procedures.

Deliberations during the session brought to the fore several operational challenges, including the absence of comprehensive enrollee registers at facility level, inconsistencies between facility and LGA data, and systemic delays in report submission. Stakeholders also advocated for the deployment of digital solutions to streamline data capture and transmission.

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The Monitoring and Evaluation Officer for Owan West, Okakah Anthonia Funmilayo, also stressed the importance of enhancing data reporting by urging officers to adopt a more deliberate and consistent follow-up approach with Officers-in-Charge (OICs)
Responding to these concerns,

Dr. Owen reaffirmed the pivotal role of Monitoring and Evaluation Officers within the data governance framework, cautioning against any attempts to circumvent established reporting structures.

He further indicated that enhanced supervision and validation mechanisms would be instituted to safeguard data integrity.

He also reiterated the Commission’s commitment to the “Treat and Enrol” model, which ensures that vulnerable individuals are not denied access to care pending formal enrollment, while emphasizing the necessity of proper documentation and reporting of such cases.

The engagement also revealed disparities in performance across LGAs, with Etsako Central receiving commendation for exemplary compliance, while underperforming LGAs were urged to strengthen their efforts, particularly in the areas of data reporting, supervision, and service utilization.

Key resolutions emerging from the meeting included the standardization of data submission timelines to facilitate prompt reporting to national authorities, the dissemination of updated enrollee lists across facilities and LGAs, the intensification of training and capacity-building initiatives, and the reinforcement of financial accountability mechanisms at the facility level.

The Commission also reiterated the critical importance of the National Identification Number (NIN) as a prerequisite for accessing healthcare services, signaling a move towards stricter compliance in line with national policy directives.