Former youth and sports minister Franck Nguema has called for a fundamental reform of the National Health Insurance and Social Guarantee Fund (CNAMGS) during a press conference held on 8 June 2026 in Akanda. Reacting to debates triggered by the World Health Organization’s 2025 report, he stressed that the real issue is not whether CNAMGS should exist, but rather its ability to provide genuine access to quality healthcare for insured members. He noted that the WHO report does not label CNAMGS a ‘fraud’ or a ‘scam,’ but instead underscores the urgent need for system reform.
Nguema pointed out that Gabon has successfully established broad administrative health coverage, with nearly 76% of the population registered. However, this progress remains insufficient if beneficiaries still struggle to see a doctor, obtain medication, receive hospital care, or get treatment within reasonable timeframes. He believes that the gap between stated coverage and real-life experience fuels frustration among policyholders and undermines trust in the social protection system.
Advocating for real healthcare access under CNAMGS
Franck Nguema therefore proposes complementing the expansion of health coverage with a “national guarantee of effective medical coverage.” The performance of CNAMGS should no longer be measured solely by the number of insured individuals or cards issued, but rather by concrete criteria such as access-to-care rates, medicine availability, treatment delays, and reduction of out-of-pocket expenses for households.
In his view, this shift would represent a genuine paradigm change. By putting health outcomes at the center of its operations, CNAMGS would become a tool for performance and poverty reduction. The former minister therefore urges authorities to undertake an ambitious reform to transform administrative coverage into truly effective medical care for all Gabonese people.
