Ethiopia has announced plans to provide social health insurance coverage to all government employees by 2027, a move aimed at strengthening access to healthcare for public servants.

Tesfaye Worku, director general of the Ethiopian Health Insurance Service, said the programme, established 14 years ago, will now be extended to workers in permanent positions across federal and regional administrations. Employees will contribute three percent of their salaries, with governments covering an additional three percent.

Implementation has been slow in previous years due to limited funding and rising living costs. Last year, more than 500,000 government employees were registered under the scheme, supported by 4.5 billion birr allocated from the federal budget.

Officials said the extension will ensure all government staff are enrolled by 2027, with federal and regional budgets adjusted to cover the associated contributions.