According to a news report from the Kwara State Government Facebook Page, the Kwara State Government, through the Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, has launched the first round of the 2024 Maternal Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW).

This initiative aims to provide intensive, high-impact, low-cost interventions across Primary Health Care Facilities in all 193 wards of the state.

The intervention is designed to reduce the high morbidity and mortality rates among women and children under five in the state.

Speaking at the launch on Wednesday at the premises of the Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency in Ilorin, the First Lady of Kwara State, Amb. Prof. Olufolake AbdulRazaq, highlighted that the MNCHW interventions include birth registration, immunisation, nutritional assessment, vitamin A supplementation, deworming, and growth monitoring.

The First Lady stated that pregnant women will have access to ante-natal care services that include free hematinics tablets and dose of anti-malaria drugs, stating that this intervention is part of the strategies of the National Council on Health, to improve Maternal and Child Health towards the delivery of high impact and cost efficient interventions to women and children in Kwara State.

She called on all stakeholders, service providers, community leaders, the media and especially, mothers and caregivers to ensure that their children are immunized, while urging them to support improved ante-natal care and nutrition among others.

Amb. AbdulRazaq stressed that the support should not only be through this campaign but also in their respective spaces, emphasizing that most of the maternal and child deaths and morbidity are avoidable if preventive measures are taken and adequate care is available.

The First Lady pointed out that interventions like this, coupled with increased sensitisation about taking ownership of one’s health and utilizing health care services could significantly contribute to the reduction of maternal and child mortality.

The First Lady therefore enjoined mothers, fathers, guardians, relatives and caregivers to avail themselves, their children and wards of these opportunities as we owe these children a duty to care and protect them, encouraging Religious and Traditional Leaders to work with the health workers to ensure the success of these interventions.

In her remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Amina El-Imam, said health is everyone’s business and called on all stakeholders to support these programmes to reduce astounding indices on maternal and infant mortality.

In her welcome remarks, the Executive Secretary, Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Nusirat Elelu, described the MNCHW as another health intervention of the State government, adding that earmarked medical services would be made available in all the 193 wards of the State from 15th to 19th July, 2024 to ensure increased utilization of low cost and high impact interventions across the State.

Dr. Elelu disclosed that the outreach teams will move across nooks and crannies to reach eligible residents, stating that the maternal and infant morbidity indices were still high but the commitment of the State government is changing the narrative in the State.

“Kwara State has one of the lowest under-5 mortalities in the country according to the result of the UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MCS)", the Executive Secretary stated.

She stressed that the State Government is deliberate about issues related to mothers and children as evidenced in all the interventions executed across Ministries of Health, Women Affairs and Social Development.

In his goodwill message, the State Cordinator of World Health, Dr. Emmanuel Eyitayo, commended Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq on the health week and other health interventions on infant and maternal health, while also commending the First Lady of the State for her support on health care development in Kwara State.

The representative of United Nations Children's Fund, Vaccine Supply Logistics (VSL), Pharmacist Bolaji Abdullahi, charged the intended beneficiaries to participate in the programme and not to put the interventions to a waste, while he charged mothers to come out and present their children to improve health indices in the State.

The flag-off ceremony had in attendance the wife of the Honourable Speaker of the House of Assembly, Hajia Saadat Danladi; the Chairman, House Committee on Health and Environment, Hon. Olatunde Rasaq Owolabi; Secretary to the State Government, represented by Dr. Idowu Bosede Anu; Commissioner for Communications, Hon. Bola Olukoju; Traditional Leaders, Religious Leaders, among other dignitaries from all walks of life.