FG Launches Maternal Care Incentives as Nigeria Targets 30% Drop in Maternal Deaths
Korede Abdullah 
LAGOS, Nigeria – The Federal Government has launched a new incentive programme to encourage more pregnant women to use antenatal, facility-based delivery and postnatal services as Nigeria intensifies efforts to reduce its high maternal and newborn mortality rates.
The initiative was formally launched on Monday in Abuja, during the National Flag-Off of Incentives to Increase Maternal and Newborn Care Services Utilisation.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, described maternal mortality as one of Nigeria’s most pressing health challenges.
Citing the 2023/2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, Salako said a Nigerian woman faces approximately a one-in-19 lifetime risk of dying from pregnancy-related causes, compared with about one in 4,900 in the most developed countries.
The programme targets 172 Local Government Areas across 33 states. Although the LGAs represent about 20 per cent of Nigeria’s total, they account for approximately 55 per cent of maternal deaths.
MAMII aims to reduce maternal mortality by 30 per cent and neonatal mortality by 20 per cent in the targeted areas by 2028.
The initiative is also expected to provide free, timely and comprehensive care to about 2.9 million pregnant women.
According to Salako, more than 250 health facilities are currently implementing MAMII in Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina and Ogun states.
He said the service had transported nearly 79,000 beneficiaries to appropriate healthcare facilities, with pregnant women accounting for about 60 per cent.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, said MAMII was developed under the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative to address both the supply and demand sides of maternal healthcare.
“Pregnancy is not a disease,” Pate said, stressing that no woman should lose her life while giving birth.
About the Author
Mirian Gom 
Oluwatobi Adu