Muhammad Jamil Abubakar
The Gombe State Government has reaffirmed its commitment to reducing maternal and neonatal deaths through the implementation of the Maternal and Newborn Mortality Reduction Innovation and Initiatives (MAMII).
MAMII is an initiative introduced under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Coordinating Minister of Health, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate.
Speaking at a five-day co-creation workshop in Gombe, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Habu Dahiru, described the event as a collaborative effort between the federal and state governments to harmonize and coordinate actions for seamless implementation of MAMII across Gombe State.
Dr. Dahiru noted that maternal and neonatal mortality remains significantly high in the North-East region, particularly in Gombe State.
According to him, the MAMII initiative aims to drastically reduce these rates by strengthening antenatal care, safe delivery practices, and deploying community engagement strategies such as the Mama2Mama initiative and Chief Agents to identify and assist pregnant women in accessing healthcare facilities.
He revealed that eight local government areas in Gombe have been identified as vulnerable and will receive targeted support to tackle maternal mortality.
Addressing human resource challenges, he stated that the state government is working to increase the number of midwives, health workers, and essential medical supplies to boost maternal healthcare delivery.
The National Coordinator of MAMII, Dr. Dayo Adeyanju, emphasized the importance of a sector-wide approach involving all levels of government, communities, and development partners.
He advocated for increased girl-child education and the deployment of community-based health workers to encourage women to seek healthcare services from pregnancy through delivery.
MAMII has identified 172 high-risk local government areas across Nigeria and aims to reduce maternal mortality by 30 percent within two years through coordinated action, use of digital tracking platforms, and incentive-based healthcare interventions.
A representative of the Clinton Health Initiative CHAI, Hajia Zainab Muhammad, reiterated the organization’s commitment to supporting Gombe State in promoting safe pregnancies, maternal health, and child spacing initiatives.
Participants at the workshop included representatives from federal and state health agencies, the National Health Insurance Authority, GoHealth, the Drug Management Agency, religious and community leaders, and the media.