In a renewed push toward achieving universal health coverage in Lagos State, the Lagos State Health Management Agency (LASHMA) has engaged Community Development Council (CDC) chairmen across the state in a strategic collaborative session to drive grassroots enrollment into the ILERA EKO Health Insurance Scheme through the newly established ILERA N’ TIWA Cooperative and Multipurpose Society Ltd.
The Permanent Secretary of LASHMA, Dr. Emmanuella Zamba, who led the session at the Agency’s headquarters in Alausa, Ikeja, said the meeting was designed to strengthen partnership with community leaders and deepen residents’ participation in the social health insurance scheme.
Zamba, who was represented by the Coordinator of Regulations at LASHMA, Mr. Tosin Awosika explained that the ILERA N’ TIWA Cooperative was initiated as a financial inclusion strategy to promote flexible health insurance payments and provide socio-economic support to enrollees, adding that through the cooperative model, residents can pay their ILERA EKO premiums in instalments, while still enjoying full health coverage, loan access, and empowerment opportunities.
Dr. Zamba appealed to CDC chairmen to become ambassadors of the initiative in their localities, describing the cooperative as a “financial lifeline that blends social protection with economic empowerment.”
Also speaking was The Head of Business Development and Marketing at LASHMA, Mr. Rotimi Olatunji, who gave an overview of the ILERA N’ TIWA Cooperative, described it as an innovative bridge between healthcare access and financial empowerment. He said the cooperative was launched in December 2024 to address payment defaults among enrollees and strengthen retention within the ILERA EKO scheme, particularly among informal sector workers.
Olatunji outlined the cooperative’s flexible payment structure, which allows individuals to join with a ₦1,000 registration fee and monthly contributions starting from ₦4,500 for individuals and ₦10,500 for a family of four, saying “Beyond healthcare access, members enjoy dividends on savings, referral bonuses, food bank access, and loans up to twice their total contributions after six months”.
In her presentation, Mrs. Bunmi Peters, LASHMA’s Emergency Care Officer, provided an in-depth explanation of the Standard Jaara Health Plan — one of the major packages under ILERA EKO. She described the plan as a comprehensive, people-centered health insurance product designed to provide access to quality and affordable care for all Lagos residents.
Peters highlighted the wide range of services covered under the plan, including outpatient care, treatment for chronic conditions, maternal and child health services, eye and dental care, surgical interventions, laboratory investigations, and pharmaceutical access. She also disclosed that the plan integrates telemedicine through ILERA EKO’s Virtual Booths (V-Booths) located across markets and communities, offering residents 24-hours services.
