RURAL ETHIOPIAN HOSPITAL TRANSFORMING THE HEALTH INSURANCE LANDSCAPE

This case study describes how Saglan Wajee General Hospital, a private facility in Holeta Town, Ethiopia, is transitioning into the country's first full-fledged health insurance company after participating in FSD Africa’s BimaLab Insurtech Accelerator Program. The hospital developed the 'Efoy' micro-health insurance product to improve healthcare access for low and middle-income families and is now establishing the Family Medical Network insurance company.

• Saglan Wajee General Hospital is set to become the first full-fledged health insurance company in Ethiopia. This follows a period of 14 years during which the National Bank of Ethiopia had stopped issuing such licenses after a previous company failed. The hospital received its license six months after participating in the BimaLab Insurtech Accelerator Program.
• The hospital developed and iterated a micro-health insurance product called Efoy. Efoy 1.0 attracted over 1,200 customers in its first year, offering coverage for low and middle-income families. The subsequent version, Efoy 2.0, introduced segmented services for individuals, families, and chronic patients, resulting in approximately 900 additional patients.
• To overcome the lack of 'instant gratification' typically associated with insurance, Saglan Wajee Hospital configured its cash registers to automatically reduce the fees of insured patients by 99.9%, often billing only one or two cents on invoices such as 2000 birrs (17.4 USD).
• The hospital's future expansion plans include launching a new branch in Addis Ababa and integrating 130 health facilities into its insurance network. It is implementing an insurance company named Family Medical Network to provide both micro- and comprehensive insurance.

APA

FSD Africa (n.d.). RURAL ETHIOPIAN HOSPITAL TRANSFORMING THE HEALTH INSURANCE LANDSCAPE. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/3e.-Saglan-Wajee-Hospital-write-up-Final.pdf

Chicago

FSD Africa. RURAL ETHIOPIAN HOSPITAL TRANSFORMING THE HEALTH INSURANCE LANDSCAPE. n.d. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/3e.-Saglan-Wajee-Hospital-write-up-Final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=FSD Africa |title=RURAL ETHIOPIAN HOSPITAL TRANSFORMING THE HEALTH INSURANCE LANDSCAPE |url=https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/3e.-Saglan-Wajee-Hospital-write-up-Final.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fsdafricandrural, author = {{FSD Africa}}, title = {{RURAL ETHIOPIAN HOSPITAL TRANSFORMING THE HEALTH INSURANCE LANDSCAPE}}, institution = {FSD Africa}, url = {https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/3e.-Saglan-Wajee-Hospital-write-up-Final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }