Togo: the School Assur programme becomes School AMU

---

Extract from the article: The Togolese government has decided to improve health cover for pupils in state schools. In Togo, the School Assur programme, which has been running since 2017 to provide health cover for pupils in public schools, has just been integrated into the na

---

The Togolese government has decided to improve health cover for pupils in state schools. In Togo, the School Assur programme, which has been running since 2017 to provide health cover for pupils in public schools, has just been integrated into the national Universal Health Insurance (UHI) project, which has been running since January 2024. It is now called School AMU, according to a statement issued by the National Health Insurance Institute (INAM).

School AMU offers free and simplified healthcare for pre-school, primary and secondary school pupils throughout the country. The School AMU programme provides free basic health cover for all registered pupils, with flexible conditions of cover. INAM, in collaboration with its partners, has taken the necessary steps to make this programme effective throughout the country.

One of the major changes in this new system, which will be operational from the start of the 2024-2025 school year, concerns the management of medical forms. Whereas this task was previously the responsibility of parents, it will now be carried out directly by schools and health facilities. To this end, a partnership already exists between the INAM and the heads of schools and health staff. The aim of this collaboration is to facilitate procedures and ensure effective monitoring of student care.

The Institut National d'Assurance Maladie (INAM), which manages the School AMU medical assistance scheme, is informing all its partners that only public health centres and their in-house pharmacies are authorised to treat pupils benefiting from School AMU.

The health centres concerned are peripheral care units, medico-social centres and district or prefectural hospitals. Regional hospital centres and university hospital centres provide care for student beneficiaries on the basis of referrals validated by the INAM. Consequently, private health facilities and private pharmacies are not eligible to treat School AMU beneficiaries.

The Director General of INAM, Justin Pilanté, expressed his gratitude to the pupils, parents, teachers and health professionals for their mobilisation and commitment to the success of this programme.He also called on all stakeholders to work together to ensure the success of this initiative, which aims to strengthen social protection in Togo.

Jean ELI