The Abia State Government has inaugurated the Abia State Diaspora Healthcare Endowment Fund, an initiative designed to support health insurance enrolment for indigent citizens, particularly those operating in the informal sector.
The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, disclosed this on Monday while briefing journalists on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting presided over by Governor Alex Otti.
Prince Kanu said, “Abia State Diaspora Healthcare Endowment Fund was also inaugurated on Saturday, 22nd August, by His Excellency, Dr. Alex Otti.
“This is a health support fund created to support health insurance enrollment for indigent and poor citizens on the informal sector”.
He said the state’s health insurance coverage had risen to 269,900 enrollees, describing the steady growth as an indication of increasing public confidence in the government’s healthcare reforms.
The Commissioner said the state government was also sustaining efforts to strengthen the state’s healthcare workforce,
He added that recruitment of medical personnel was ongoing, with the recruitment portal still open to medical officers, dental officers and consultants.
Prince Kanu also announced the conclusion of the recruitment exercise for the second batch of teachers, saying 4,074 successful candidates had received notifications of their appointments.
According to him, the exercise was conducted transparently and on merit, adding that the newly recruited teachers are expected to commence onboarding and orientation next week.
The Commissioner noted that their deployment would help strengthen the state’s teaching workforce and address manpower shortages in specific subject areas.
“The recruitment of these additional 4,074 teachers will strengthen the state’s teaching workforce.
“And it will address specific subject areas where the Ministry of Education has been short in terms of relevant teachers that will teach specific subjects”, Prince Kanu said.
He further disclosed that a ministerial committee from the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) had visited Abia to assess the implementation and impact of the state’s Smart Schools Project.
Prince Kanu said the project had attracted attention at the federal level and was increasingly being regarded as a reference point for innovative approaches to basic education.
On power supply, the Commissioner said the state government was pursuing measures to provide more reliable electricity to the Umuahia ring-fenced area.
He said the plans included the licensing of a generation plant within the area, as well as the evacuation of generation capacity from the Alaoji Power Plant.
Prince Kanu said the measures were part of the Otti led administration’s efforts to improve infrastructure and create an enabling environment for economic activity in the state.
