In a renewed effort to address Nigeria’s alarming under-five mortality rate, the Federal Government has distributed 400 Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines to 139 health facilities across the country.
This move is consistent with the government’s pledge to decrease neonatal mortality as part of the Nigeria Every Newborn Action Plan (NiENAP) 2023.
During a press briefing at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja to commemorate World Pneumonia and Prematurity Day, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, the Honourable Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, addressed the audience. He highlighted that the country’s under-five mortality rate had decreased from 132 per 1,000 live births in 2018 to 110 per 1,000 in 2023, according to the National Demographic Health Survey.
Dr. Salako warned that Nigeria continues to be a major factor in global child mortality, representing a large share of the 808,920 pneumonia-related deaths each year in low- and middle-income nations.
According to Dr. Salako, childhood pneumonia continues to be a neglected cause of death. He cautioned that unless we embrace and execute all effective interventions, Nigeria may not achieve the Sustainable Development Goals related to child mortality by 2030.
HATCH Technologies and the Christian Health Association of Nigeria (CHAN) have collaborated to donate CPAP machines aimed at treating newborns suffering from respiratory distress syndrome. Dr. Salako thanked the partners for their support, saying, “You have enhanced our efforts to decrease neonatal and under-five mortality.”
Daju Kachollom, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, emphasized the significance of universal health coverage as a means to address disparities.
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