NHIS takes services to Island communities with new 22-seater boat

Residents of island communities in the Kwahu Afram Plains North District are expected to have improved access to National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) services following the commissioning of a 22-seater fibre boat for outreach activities.

The boat, commissioned at Zikpo Nyuinyui by the Eastern Regional Minister, Rita Akosua Adjei Awatey, will facilitate the movement of NHIS officials to communities including Dwarf Island, Digya Island and Dodi Island.

The initiative is aimed at addressing the geographical difficulties that have often made it challenging for residents of the island communities to access essential public services.

With the new boat, NHIS officials will be able to travel across the lake to provide services such as registration, membership renewal and other community outreach programmes, reducing the need for residents to undertake long journeys to the mainland.

Ms Awatey said the location of the island communities should not prevent residents from accessing essential government services.

“For residents of the island communities, accessing essential services can be challenging because of the distance and the lake,” she said.

She explained that the boat would enhance the mobility of NHIS officials and enable the scheme to take its services directly to communities that are difficult to reach by road.

“This is an important step towards ensuring that where people live does not become a barrier to accessing public services,” the minister added.

The Regional Minister noted that for residents of the island communities, the lake remains a major factor in determining how easily they can access services available to people on the mainland.

She said improving transportation across the lake would therefore make NHIS registration, membership renewal and other outreach activities more accessible to residents.

The intervention is also expected to contribute to efforts to expand health insurance coverage in remote communities and ensure that residents in hard-to-reach areas are not excluded from essential public services.

Ms Awatey commended the District Chief Executive for Kwahu Afram Plains North, Kate Mawusi Babanawo, the NHIS and other stakeholders for their role in making the boat available.

The commissioning of the boat represents an effort to bridge the geographical gap between the island communities and public service providers, particularly for residents scattered across the lake in the Kwahu Afram Plains area.