Ghana and Rwanda have been hailed as the countries with the most reliable health insurance schemes in Africa.

This came up at a Health Insurance Workshop held in Accra and sponsored by the USAID, the World Bank and the World Health Organisation.

It was on the theme: “Extending Health Insurance: How to Make it Work,” and had participants from eight African countries.

The workshop - the first of its kind - brought together representatives from the government, civil society and the private sector from Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. Ethiopia, Liberia and Sierra Leone participated as observer countries.

The workshop raised awareness on the linkages between health insurance schemes and the need to eliminate catastrophic health insurance costs for the poorest and hence alleviating poverty.

Minister of Health designate, Dr. Benjamin Kumbuor speaking at the closing ceremony, said "Very often health insurance is concentrated on urban populations and the formal sectors. We in Ghana believe that the people in need are those in the rural areas and so we made provisions to cover them."

The minister said “Although the scale up of the Ghanaian health insurance is ongoing and continues to face certain challenges, your workshop demonstrates that it is an inspiration to other nations on the continent to show that where there is the commitment to improve financial access to health care for the people, the dream can be made a reality.

“It is always a pleasure for us to exchange experiences with other countries who are trying to do the same. Ghana now has a wealth of knowledge and trained technical professionals who have developed expertise in Health Insurance and you can fall on them to assist you in your respective country efforts.”

Opportunity to learn

	A section of the participants in the workshop

“The workshop was structured around eight design elements: political feasibility, financing mechanisms, population coverage, benefit package design, engagement with health care providers, organizational structure, operationalizing health insurance, and monitoring and evaluation,” a statement issued on the last day of the workshop said.

“The workshop provided an opportunity for participants to launch a community of practice on health insurance and health financing. Participating countries not only have counterparts from the National Health Insurance Authority of Ghana to use as a resource, as well as each other, but also two newly created World Hank hubs in Dakar, Senegal and Nairobi, Kenya,” the statement added.

“Health insurance has the potential to produce many benefits for the health system, including protecting families from catastrophic medical costs and expanding access to priority health services. However, the potential advantages depend on good governance, sound design of benefits, pricing, and provider payments among other things. Many African countries are interested in health insurance and are experimenting with different forms of risk pooling.”

The next workshop is scheduled for June 2010 in Rwanda.


Story by Malik Abass Daabu/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana