5,255 Nigerians benefited from EMT gateway fund in 6 months – NEMSAS — News — The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News

The National Emergency Medical Service and Ambulance System (NEMSAS) says 5,255 beneficiaries across Nigeria benefited from the Emergency Medical Treatment (EMT) of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).

Dr. Saidu Dumbulwa, National Programme Manager, NEMSAS, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja, on the sidelines of the Ministerial Oversight Committee for BHCPF during its 10th quarterly meeting to review progress on BHCPF implementation.

Dumbulwa said the gateway fund was between the fourth quarter of 2024 and February 2025, emphasising that the fund assisted in providing financial support to improve access to emergency healthcare services.

He said that 3,952 beneficiaries received emergency medical care in tertiary health facilities, while 1,303 accessed support through the State Emergency Medical Service and Ambulance System (SEMSAS) pathway.

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According to him, the EMT Gateway Fund is designed to ensure timely access to life-saving medical interventions, particularly for vulnerable groups such as pregnant women, children under five, and individuals facing medical emergencies.

He underscored that the initiative aligns with ongoing national efforts to strengthen emergency healthcare and reduce mortality rates associated with delays in accessing treatment.

Dumbulwa revealed that 25 states and 12 tertiary health facilities have been empanelled under the EMT Gateway Fund, marking significant progress in expanding emergency medical services nationwide.

He also highlighted that the initiative aligns with the World Bank-supported Rural Emergency Service and Maternal Transport (RESMAT) project, which seeks to improve emergency medical transport and maternal healthcare services in underserved communities.

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“The RESMAT project is currently being piloted across 15 states, including Ebonyi, Ekiti, Delta, Ogun, Lagos, Bauchi, Gombe, Nasarawa, Sokoto, Kano, Kaduna, Yobe, Taraba, Plateau, and Rivers.

“A memorandum of agreement has been signed between the World Bank, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), and the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), with a performance framework in place to track the project’s implementation,” he said.

He outlined key milestones achieved so far in the project.

“Stakeholder engagements across the 15 pilot states to develop an implementation framework tailored to local contexts.

“Training of 150 Programme Implementation Unit (PIU) staff to enhance coordination, fiduciary management, and operational capacity.

“Training of 45 trainers in Community First Aid Response, who will cascade knowledge to Community Emergency Medical Transport Triage Officers (CEMTTOs) and Emergency Transport Operators (ETOs) in each ward.

“Procurement of operational equipment, including laptops, printers, Android phones, and GPS trackers.

“Procurement of emergency medical service assets, such as petrol/CNG-fueled tricycle ambulances and boat ambulances, to improve emergency response in rural areas,” he highlighted.

To strengthen Nigeria’s emergency healthcare system, he explained that RESMAT operates under the following model.

“Community Emergency Medical Transport Triage Officers (CEMTTOs), selected by Ward Development Committees (WDCs), serve as community dispatch officers, coordinating emergency transport and mapping out healthcare facilities.

“Emergency Transport Operators (ETOs) from the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and private vehicle owners are empanelled and sensitised in each community to ensure prompt medical transport services.

“A fixed tariff of N10,000 is electronically paid to emergency transport operators using a USSD-based payment system, ensuring instant financial settlement.

“Vouchers for pregnant women are introduced to track antenatal care (ANC), delivery, postnatal care, and referrals, ensuring accountability in service provision.

“Alignment with Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health Initiative (MAMII),” he highlighted.

He noted that NEMSAS, through the World Bank-funded RESMAT pilot, has targeted 290 LGAs across the 15 pilot states.

Dumbulwa revealed that 77 out of the 172 MAMII-prioritised LGAs have been identified for intervention under RESMAT.

To expand its reach, he said NEMSAS is open to collaborating with SCO-MAMII to scale up the RESMAT strategy across the remaining 95 LGAs, ensuring wider healthcare coverage and improved maternal and child health outcomes.

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He outlined the next steps in the EMT Gateway Fund and RESMAT implementation, including the disbursement of operational funds to states based on the signed memorandum of agreement and performance framework.

He added that efforts would be fast-tracked to procure and distribute emergency medical service assets to support project implementation.

According to him, the rollout of the USSD payment system would be accelerated to facilitate instant electronic payments to emergency transport operators, while collaboration with MAMII would be strengthened to expand intervention efforts to additional LGAs.

He reaffirmed NEMSAS’s commitment to improving emergency healthcare access, reducing maternal and child mortality, and strengthening Nigeria’s health emergency response system.

He called on stakeholders, including state governments, healthcare providers, and development partners, to support the ongoing initiatives to ensure a seamless and efficient emergency medical transport system across Nigeria.