By Oseni Hussain Obaro
Kogi State is blessed, it is the Confluence State. Bordered by nine states and the FCT, with 21 Local Government Areas and 239 political wards. But that vastness has become a death trap for healthcare delivery.
From Ibaji riverine to the hills of Ogori-Magongo, from the forests of Bassa to the farmlands of Yagba West, millions of Kogites are living without access to timely and quality healthcare. And we cannot continue to pretend that a signpost saying “PHC” means there is healthcare.
The Harsh Reality in Kogi
On paper, Kogi has 947 public PHCs with at least one per ward. In reality: According to the Kogi State Government’s own 2024 HRH Profile, there are no medical doctors available in the entire PHC system instead of 239 required (1 per ward), only 2 pharmacy technicians instead of 712 required, only 311 JCHEWs instead of 4,272, and only 166 nurses/midwives instead of 2,682 required. Gaps of -196 nurses in Bassa, -195 in Adavi, -193 in Ankpa are common.
The Implications Are Clear:
– The few fully functioning centres are clustered in Lokoja, Okene, Kabba and cannot serve all communities
– Most ward PHCs are dilapidated, without labs, drugs, water supply, power, or manpower
– Distance kills — a woman in labour in Olamaboro, Igalamela-Odolu or Ibaji may travel over 25km on unmotorable roads to reach the nearest functional facility
– Accident victims on the Abuja-Lokoja-Okene highway die before reaching FMC Lokoja
Why Mobile Clinics and Emergency Ambulance Are Now Inevitable
Kogi State’s population is predominantly rural and agrarian. If we must make healthcare delivery accessible and prompt emergency services closer to the populace, we must take the hospital to the people.
1. Mobile Hospitals Will:
– Deliver antenatal care, immunization, hypertension/diabetes screening (as piloted in 2024 across 239 wards), malaria treatment, and health education directly to all 239 wards on rotation
– Serve as first responders in cholera outbreaks common in Lokoja, Kogi/Koto-Karfe and Ibaji flood plains
– Reach Fulani hamlets, farm centers, island communities in Ibaji, and mining sites in Ankpa and Okehi that have never seen a doctor
– Reduce avoidable referrals to already overstretched General Hospitals
2. Fully Equipped Emergency Ambulances Will:
– Stop maternal deaths — no woman should die because there is no vehicle to move her from ward to facility
– Save lives on Kogi’s death-trap highways — Lokoja-Abuja, Lokoja-Okene-Auchi, Kabba-Omuo Ekiti roads
– Provide real emergency care: oxygen, defibrillator, bleeding control, IV fluids, with trained paramedics — not empty vans
– Create a functional referral link: Community → PHC → General Hospital → FMC Lokoja / Kogi State Specialist Hospital
A Clear Call to Action for Kogi State
I hereby call on Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo, the Kogi State Ministry of Health, the State Assembly, and development partners to:
1. Procure and Deploy in Phase One: 21 Mobile Clinics (1 per LGA) and 80 Emergency Ambulances (1 per 3 wards)
2. Establish Kogi State Emergency Medical Service (KOGIEMS) with a toll-free 3-digit emergency line domiciled at the Ministry of Health, Lokoja
3. Recruit and Train 500 Community-Based Paramedics and CHEWs from the 239 wards — local people who know the local terrain and language
4. Mandate LGA Chairmen and 239 Ward Councillors to provide land, security and community mobilization for the scheme
Kogi cannot be boasting of winning all 21 LGAs and 239 wards politically while our people die in those same 239 wards for lack of an ambulance. The free medical screening programme of 2024 across the 21 LGAs and 239 wards was laudable, but screening without emergency transport and follow-up treatment is incomplete. A child convulsing at 2am in Dekina needs an ambulance, not a flyer for next month’s outreach.
If we can seamlessly deploy INEC materials and political mobilization to all 239 wards during elections, we can deploy life-saving ambulances to all 239 wards. The cost of an ambulance is less than the cost of a political campaign vehicle. But the value of one ambulance is hundreds of lives saved.
Let us bring the hospital to the people. Let Kogi truly live up to its name — a confluence of hope, health and life for all
– Oseni Hussain Obaro writes from Lokoja, Kogi State
oseniobaro@yahoo.com
