LASG targets data-driven healthcare, reviews decade of reforms
By Osho Olatonmiwa
The Lagos State Government has reviewed a decade of health sector reforms, identifying persistent challenges in staffing, health insurance coverage and data management.
The review was disclosed in a statement issued on November 3, 2026, and signed by Taiwo Ismail, Head of the Public Affairs Unit, Lagos State Ministry of Health, following a stakeholder validation workshop in Alausa, Ikeja.
The workshop assessed the state’s health system from 2013 to 2023 under the Nigeria Health System Exemplar Analysis for Action Project. It brought together government officials, researchers and development partners to evaluate progress and identify areas needing further intervention.
Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, stressed the importance of reliable data for healthcare planning and resource allocation, saying Lagos needed proactive strategies to meet its growing population’s demands.
He said the state’s Smart Health Information Platform (SHIP), introduced in 2019, was about 40 per cent through its first phase, covering government-owned health facilities. The platform is expected to expand to private providers to improve data collection and support advanced analytics.
Abayomi also identified mandatory health insurance, scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027, as a key healthcare financing reform.
Presenting the findings, Lagos Research Lead, Dr. Simisola Alabi, said the state’s health budget increased more than fourfold between 2013 and 2024, while budget execution rose from 51.8 per cent in 2016 to 98.7 per cent in 2024.
The study recorded a 48 per cent increase in nurses and midwives, from 2,050 to 3,033, and a 36 per cent rise in doctors, from 865 to 1,173, between 2016 and 2023.
