Closer to the People: How Governor Monday Okpebholo Is Quietly Rebuilding Primary Health Care in Edo’s Villages

Closer to the People: How Governor Monday Okpebholo Is Quietly Rebuilding Primary Health Care in Edo’s Villages

By Festus Alenkhe

Development should not be judged only by the flyovers in Benin or the big hospitals in the city. True progress shows up where it matters most — in the village square, at the ward clinic, in the small PHC that a mother walks to at 2am with a sick child.

That is where Governor Senator Monday Okpebholo’s story is unfolding in Edo State.

From day one, his administration decided to put Primary Health Care, PHC, at the center of its agenda. Not as a side project. Not as a press statement. But as the first line of defense for every Edo family. Six months later, the changes are no longer on paper. They are on the ground.

1. The Buildings Are Coming Back to Life.

Drive through the 18 Local Government Areas today and you will see it. 

In Uromi, the PHC that once had broken windows and leaking roofs now has a fresh coat of paint. In Auchi, the abandoned center has been reopened. In Igarra and in parts of Ovia North East, facilities that collected dust for years have solar panels on the roof, boreholes for clean water, and new perimeter fences. 

The goal is simple: make sure a clinic can run day and night, even when NEPA goes off, and make sure patients and staff are safe.

2. People to Attend to People

A building without staff is just an empty room. The government knew that. 

So nurses, midwives, and community health extension workers are being recruited and redeployed to places that were left behind. The era of “one nurse covering five communities” is gradually fading. 

Training is also ongoing. Health workers are being retrained on maternal care, newborn delivery, and emergency response so that when a woman walks in for antenatal, she gets proper care right there.

3. Drugs and Tools, Where They Are Needed  .

No more stories of “come back next week, we don’t have drugs.” 

Through partnerships with NPHCDA and other development partners, essential medicines are now being sent directly to PHCs. Delivery beds, immunization fridges, blood pressure machines, and basic lab equipment have been moved in. 

The idea: treat malaria, diarrhea, antenatal cases, and minor emergencies at the community level so people don’t have to spend transport money to rush to Benin for things that should be handled in their LGA.

4. Mothers and Children First.

This is where the impact hits home. 

Immunization drives have been scaled up. Antenatal care is being strengthened. Children under 5 are getting free treatment in many PHCs. 

And for communities that maps forget, the government is sending mobile health teams into riverine areas of Ovia South West and hard-to-reach spots in Etsako Central. Boats, motorcycles, and health workers are taking vaccines and checkups to the people instead of waiting for the people to come to them.

5. Records, Supervision, and Community Ownership. 

What gets measured gets fixed. 

For the first time in a while, there is a serious push for proper record-keeping in PHCs. The State Primary Health Care Development Agency is carrying out more supervisory visits. Community health committees are being revived so that villagers can ask questions, monitor drugs, and protect the facility as their own.

Why This Matters
A strong PHC system does three things: 
It takes pressure off our big hospitals. 
It saves families money. 
And most importantly, it saves lives.

Of course, the work is not finished. The clinics will need consistent funding. Drugs must not be diverted. Health workers must be motivated and paid on time. Accountability cannot sleep.

But a foundation has been laid.

If this continues, years from now we will look back and say: this was the administration that brought healthcare home. The administration where a child in Agbede didn’t have to travel far for treatment. Where a trader in Ekpoma could check her BP in her ward. Where a pregnant woman in Okhuessan could deliver safely 10 minutes from her house.

That is governance with a human face. 
Healthcare that is close, affordable, and working.

Script by Festus Alenkhe