- The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has launched a comprehensive free health coverage and medical outreach initiative targeting more than 1,500 inmates across custodial centers within the territory.
- The initiative officially kicked off on Tuesday at the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kuje, marking the first time inmates have been formally integrated into the FCT Health Insurance Scheme under the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund.
- Under the new package, enrolled inmates will receive medical consultations, diagnostic laboratory investigations, radiological imaging, emergency treatments, surgical operations, and essential medications completely free of charge.
The Federal Capital Territory Administration has formalized a healthcare infrastructure package designed to bring correctional facility populations into the national medical insurance net.
Executed under the direct ministerial guidance of FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, Eko Hot Blog reports that the rollout represents a strategic effort to scale up inclusive medical access in alignment with the federal government’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
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The intervention, which commenced with mass documentation at the Kuje facility, is slated for immediate institutional expansion to companion correctional architectures located throughout Gwagwalada and Suleja over the coming weeks.
During the launch ceremony in Kuje, the Mandate Secretary of the Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Dr. Adedolapo Fasawe, emphasized that universal health coverage must remain blind to the social or legal status of residents.
Fasawe stated that the implementation of zero-cost health insurance inside custodial walls firmly establishes qualitative medical care as a fundamental human right rather than an exclusive civic privilege.
To guarantee seamless database integration and long-term diagnostic tracking, the secretariat paired the health enrollment with an on-site National Identification Number (NIN) registration drive for all undocumented inmates.
The medical outreach featured an extensive array of diagnostic services, including systemic blood pressure checks, blood sugar screenings, malaria testing, and optometric examinations Out of the hundreds of individuals processed during the initial exercise, medical teams successfully filled over 380 prescriptions and distributed corrective eyeglasses to more than 130 inmates.
Fasawe assured the facility leadership that the secretarial supply chain would maintain a consistent, uninterrupted flow of pharmaceuticals and clinical consumables to the center’s medical bay, promising an absolute end to drug stockouts.
The administration is also finalizing structural upgrades to formally accredit the Kuje facility’s internal clinic, allowing it to provide enhanced secondary medical operations for both inmates and correction staff.
Beyond clinical care, the secretariat expanded its outreach by purchasing vocational products manufactured by the inmates, including custom footwear, textiles, and domestic soaps, while donating direct financial grants to support internal tailoring academies.
Acknowledging the intervention, the Deputy Comptroller of the Kuje Correctional Centre, Rasheed Ogundare, labeled the comprehensive government-led program as entirely unprecedented, urging similar structural rollouts across external state commands.
