In an effort to address the significant gaps in maternal and child health services, the Kano State government, in partnership with a non-governmental organisation, Nigeria Health Watch, has organised a policy dialogue on strengthening primary healthcare (PHC) accountability for improved maternal and child health outcomes.
Kano State continues to face a maternal mortality rate of 377.8 per 100,000 live births, a figure well above the national target of 288 per 100,000, according to the NHMIS-DHIS2 2023.
This alarming statistic is exacerbated by numerous challenges, including a high prevalence of home deliveries conducted without skilled birth attendants, cultural barriers, and delays in accessing facility-based care. In many rural communities, families are discouraged from seeking skilled care due to the cost of health facility deliveries.
Additionally, primary healthcare centres (PHCs) in the state face significant workforce shortages. Many facilities lack the human resources to operate 24/7, forcing patients to seek alternatives or wait until facilities reopen.
These persistent gaps in service delivery underscore the need for stronger accountability and community participation to improve maternal and child health outcomes.
The Commissioner of Health, Dr Abubakar Yusuf, said in his address that the meeting was a right and timely look at how Kano is leading up to the number of deaths of two women and children across Nigeria.
He disclosed that the state government spends sixty million naira monthly to provide free birth control medicines and all other facilities that will improve the health of the state.
He also said the state is doing everything possible to prevent alcoholism by setting up a committee to protect anti-vaxxers and other diseases.
Similarly, the Kano State Primary Health Care Management Board (KNSPHCMB) Director, Dakta Bashir Sunusi, said that the state government has issued a plan for supplying 484 sha-ka-travel hospitals and major hospitals in all local governments of the state.
He said the state has set a huge amount of muscle in our annual budget to raise 40 Sha-ka-fin hospitals to match the generation.
Also, in her welcome speech, the Managing Director of Health Watch Foundation, Vivianne Ihekweazu, said the hospitals are playing a role in improving health care across the country.
She said that despite the state’s efforts, there is still a problem of women and children and lack of professional birth attendants to accept birth.
Ihekweazu also said the conference was one of the programmes the group has undertaken to raise awareness and calls on authorities to take appropriate measures to improve hospitals.
The Director of Programmes, Nigeria Health Watch, Kemisola Agbaoye, said strengthening PHC accountability is essential to reducing maternal and child mortality in Kano State.
“By addressing the root causes of service delivery failures, we can ensure that more mothers and children receive the care they need.”
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