ABUJA – The Federal Government on Wednesday said it had concluded arrangement to partner with USAID on a $20 million health scheme programme to build capacity of primary health services in the country.
The Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu disclosed this at the ongoing World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa holding in Abuja.
The theme of the Forum is “Forging inclusive growth, creating jobs”.
He said that the scheme with U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) would help to provide affordable financing option to reduce preventable maternal and child mortality in Nigeria.
“The programme known as Healthy Margination Mother and Child Initiative will have each of the partners contributing toward the 20 million dollars in the first phase over the next five years.
“This is to reduce preventable maternal and infant mortality rates in Nigeria,’’ he said.
The minister added that the programme would support the midwives scheme, especially in using technology to build their skills.
He noted that there was the need to grow skills in the health sector to enhance service delivery.
“Nigeria still comprises a large share of the world’s burden of child and maternal, morbidity and mortality.
“Infant mortality in Nigeria has seen a 38 per cent reduction to 78 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2012.
“These positive trends are indicative of the Nigerian government’s genuine commitment and sustained investment for maternal and newborn health, where notable progress has been made over the past few years.
“We have hired over 60, 000 new healthcare workers that are today providing better services to expectant mothers.
“It is however estimated that 22, 000 more expectant mothers are now receiving care during pregnancy.
“Clearly, there is still more to do and with partnerships like this, we can achieve our goals through our Save One Million Lives programme,’’ he said.
Mr Michael Harvey, the Nigeria Mission Director of USAID said his organisation’s focus was to promote and support stronger governance, financial and human development.
He noted that USAID would serve as partners in the creation and implementation of economic and civil strategies for the benefit of all Nigerians.
“Indeed, programme with the potential to improve the health and wellbeing of the population are critical focus of USAID’s activities in Nigeria.
“USAID is proud to serve as a strategic partner to the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Health and GE Foundation Healthcare in support of the imitative.
GE Foundation is a philanthropic organisation helping to equip organisations and communities with capacity to improve healthcare and education services.
“The reality that we know today is unacceptable and heart breaking as nearly 300,000 mothers and three million newborns die every year from causes we know how to prevent,” he said.
Harvey said that the programme would help to scale up cutting-edge solutions and unlock a brighter future for the next generation of Nigerian leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs.
He added that the scheme would give healthcare providers in Nigeria first time access to GE portable ultrasound technology such as the V-Scan. (NAN)
