The Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Finance and Investment at the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Ms. Anatu Seidu Bogobiri Esq., has urged NDC communicators in the Upper East Region to adopt a proactive, factual and united approach in communicating the achievements of the John Dramani Mahama administration.
She said government communicators must move beyond reactive responses to opposition criticisms and take the lead in shaping public discourse on the implementation of the government’s Reset Agenda.
Ms. Bogobiri was speaking at a capacity-building workshop for NDC communicators in the Upper East Region held in Bolgatanga over the weekend, under the theme “The Role of Government Communicators in Advancing the Reset Agenda.”
She described communication as a powerful tool that could determine how government policies and programmes were perceived by the public.
“Communication is not PR or propaganda. To me, communication is power,” she said.
According to her, good government policies could fail to gain public support when communicators failed to effectively explain their relevance and impact to citizens. Ms. Bogobiri described the Reset Agenda as a commitment to ensuring that government policies translated into tangible improvements in the lives of Ghanaians.
She therefore challenged communicators to demonstrate how government interventions were benefiting ordinary citizens, including market women, teachers, nurses, farmers and young people across the country.
Ms. Bogobiri cited developments in the National Health Insurance Scheme as some of the achievements communicators should be highlighting. She said the decision by President Mahama to uncap the National Health Insurance Fund had strengthened the NHIS and enabled the NHIA to address outstanding claims owed healthcare providers.
According to her, government paid about GH¢953 million in outstanding claims arrears to healthcare providers by April 2025. She added that the NHIA had since 2025 been paying claims to healthcare providers monthly, with about GH¢1.4 billion paid in claims between January and July 2026.
Ms. Bogobiri further said active NHIS membership had increased from 54 percent at the end of 2024 to 66 percent at the end of 2025 and stood at 76 percent as of June 2026.
She also highlighted the rollout of free primary healthcare and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, popularly known as Mahama Care, as key interventions intended to improve access to healthcare and reduce the financial burden on families.
“These are achievements we should shout on the rooftops for Ghanaians to know, and not just to know, but to make good use of these policy interventions to their benefit,” she said.
The NHIA Deputy CEO urged communicators to avoid becoming defensive when confronted with claims that the government had failed to deliver on its promises. Instead, she said, they should respond with verifiable evidence.
“When someone says that the government has failed, please don’t get defensive. Just show the data. Show the investment. Show the reset in action. Just show them the documents,” she advised.
She said communicators must be “rapid, factual and fearless”, warning that misinformation could quickly undermine public confidence in government programmes, particularly in the digital age. Ms. Bogobiri also encouraged communicators to take their messages to the grassroots by using local languages such as Gurune and Kusaal while connecting local development initiatives to the broader national agenda.
She charged the communicators to be proactive rather than reactive by leading public discussions and communicating government achievements before opponents define the narrative.
“Don’t wait for the opposition to define NHIS. Tell the success stories first. Flood your constituencies with the truth,” she said.
She also advised communicators to make better use of limited airtime by reducing lengthy introductions and focusing more quickly on government policies, programmes and achievements. Ms. Bogobiri urged the communicators to consistently repeat key achievements in their radio and television appearances, arguing that repetition was essential to effective public communication.
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