The Kano State Government KNSG, in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund UNICEF, has inaugurated 1,096 newly recruited health personnel to strengthen maternal and child healthcare services across the state.
The beneficiaries include 380 Skilled Birth Attendants (SBAs) and 716 Community-Based Health Workers (CBHWs), deployed across 18 selected Local Government Areas.
The inauguration ceremony, held at the conference hall of the Kano State Primary Health Care Management Board (SPHCMB), attracted key stakeholders in the health sector.
In his remarks, the Officer-in-Charge of UNICEF Field Office Kano,Dr Karanveer Singh, reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to supporting the implementation of the Maternal, Neonatal and Child Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative (MAMII) and the Community-Based Health Workers programme across 200 wards in the selected LGAs.
He described the inauguration as a historic milestone in Kano State’s journey toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC), noting that the initiative would enhance access to quality healthcare at the grassroots.
According to him, “By professionalizing, equipping, and digitizing the roles of community-based health workers and skilled birth attendants, these personnel will not just deliver services but hope, dignity, and quality care directly to communities.”
Dr. Singh emphasized that investing in the health of women and children is key to building stronger and more resilient societies, adding that efforts must continue to ensure no community is left behind.
He commended the Kano State Ministry of Health, SPHCMB, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, and the Federal Ministry of Health for their collaboration in deploying the health workers.
Also speaking, the Kano State Commissioner for Health, Abubakar Labaran, urged the newly recruited personnel to discharge their duties diligently and uphold professional standards.
He reiterated the state government’s commitment to improving child survival and reducing maternal and neonatal mortality, urging the workers to actively engage communities, address malnutrition, and tackle zero-dose immunization challenges.
The Commissioner noted that Kano State has made significant progress in the past two years in improving health indices.
Some of the newly recruited health workers, including Sadiya Abubakar and Amina Abdullahi, pledged to work diligently to achieve the objectives of the programme.
Highlights of the event included the distribution of engagement letters to the 1,096 newly recruited staff and goodwill messages from stakeholders.