Healthcare, Injury, Accidental Death: Schools Invest In Student Safety

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Healthcare, Injury, Accidental Death: Schools Invest In Student Safety

Fixed at FCFA 100 annually by a statutory law passed in 1975, Cameroon’s mandatory school insurance fee is covered by companies shortlisted by the Ministry of Secondary Education.

16 Sep 2026 15:16

F ifteen-year-old Albert sits outside a clinic with a broken leg, while his mother clutches hospital bills that his school insurance is expected cover. Set by a 1975 law, Cameroon’s mandatory school insurance costs just FCFA 100 per pupil annually to cover medical care, disability, or ac cidental death during school hours and daily commutes. To enter schools, the Ministry of Secondary Education through its Directorate of Guidance Counselling, School Life and Educational Assistance (DOVAS), ahead of each academic year, shortlists insurance companies based on solvency and capa city. Approved local firms under the supervision of Regional, Divisional or Sub-divisional delegates of secondary edu cation then pitch to principals and Parent-Teacher Associa tions (PTAs), who collect the mandatory FCFA 100 fee during student registration. “When observers look at Cameroon’s estimated seven million enrolled secondary students nationwide, they imagine a vast FCFA 700 million liquidity pool. In rea lity, in a school of 2,000 pupils collecting FCFA 200,000 total, one fracture requiring surge ry costs over FCFA 350,000. FCFA 100 cannot cover mo dern emergency medicine,” explains Eliot Dikongue, an insurance agent in Yaounde. He adds “When no accidents occur, funds are not refunded. Insurance is mutualized risk pooling. Unclaimed premiums cover administrative taxes and cross-subsidize major claims at other schools. An insurer can work with several schools a year. It depends on the school and their pitching capacity.” The structural reality of the product goes deeper than im mediate injury. Periot A.Z, an experienced insurance agent clarifies “school insurance is of the life insurance branch. In school insurance, we ensure the child and their education.” Given rates are legally fixed, insurers compete via commis sions, offering schools 10% to 15% for collection and printing costs. However, friction persists especially when schools delay remitting funds, while insurers face bureaucratic ...