With a total of 576 dying out of every pregnant women in Nigeria due to birth complications, MTN Foundation, MTNF, is renovating 24 hospitals across six states under its MTNF Maternal Ward Support Project. The six selected states are Abia, Cross River, Kaduna, Niger, Oyo and Sokoto States.
Under the first phase, the goal showed that four hospitals in each states that are being renovated would be equipped with 20 hospital beds, 20 standard mattresses, 20 bed pillows, 10 four-way foldable ward screens, 20 metal beside cupboards, 20 visitors’ chairs, 10 drip stands, hydraulic over -bed tables, height adjustable baby cots, and carl novel incubators for preterm babies.
Mrs Nonny Ugboma, the Executive Director, MTNF, at a media launch of the project in Lagos, explained that the project was part of their contribution to improve access to health care systems and skilled health professionals for pregnant women in Nigeria which have been linked to high maternal mortality rate in the country.
Ugboma, while speaking, quoted a UNICEF statistics that showed that every single day, Nigeria loses 2,300 under five children and 145 women of child bearing lamented that these deaths were preventable.
A sizeable number of maternal deaths occur due to inaccessible pre-natal care. So if these soon-to-be mothers had access to proper pre and post natal care, then their deaths may have been averted” – she said.
She further explained the rational behind the project, stating that the Foundation invested into the programme in recognition of the fact that maternal, neonatal and child health should be one of the highest priorities for the society.
