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The Federal Ministry of Health, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and GE Healthcare have entered into a $20 million five-year initiative to reduce preventable child-maternal deaths in Nigeria. The partnership agreement was signed at the ongoing World Economic Forum in Abuja yesterday. The partnership would entail the formation of a new Healthymagination Mother and Child Initiative, aimed at tackling maternal and infant mortality in Nigeria, which is one of Africa’s biggest healthcare challenges, as well as supports the ongoing efforts of the Ministry of Health’s “Save One Million Lives” programme.
The multilateral public/private partnership will draw on the competencies, capabilities and know-how of the respective partners. The partners will also bring funding, technology and expertise to develop unique solutions to improve Nigeria’s primary healthcare infrastructure and help build capacity for maternal and infant care.
With the formation of the Healthymagination Mother and Child Initiative, the partners would collaborate on the development and implementation of viable solutions and a sustainable model of delivery aimed at increasing capacity in the primary healthcare system and providing affordable financing options to support the reduction of preventable child-maternal mortality in Nigeria.
Specifically, the initiative will bring together mobile and alternative powered health technology; task-shifting programmes for nurses and midwives through a significant focus on training and education; and consumer education for pregnant mothers to drive the right referrals at the right time to impact Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 (reducing child mortality) and 5 (improving maternal health).
Under the terms of the agreement, each of the respective partners will contribute towards the $20 million program in the first phase for the acquisition of point-of-care equipment to strengthen the effectiveness, impact, efficiency and sustainability of primary care health facilities and services in rural and urban areas. The multilateral agreement provides scope for the addition of third parties in phase two, including donors, NGOs and other experts to ensure long-term sustainability and achievement of critical programme objectives.
To be rolled out over several phases in partnership with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) of Nigeria – the coordinating body of the FMOH; the initiative will engage in close collaboration with federal, state and local health governing bodies to launch, communicate and drive accountability through new and existing frameworks. Over time, it is envisaged that the Initiative will identify key learnings and best practices relevant for child and maternal care practitioners in Africa and beyond.
The Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, said: “While 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.”
According to him, these positive trends are indicative of 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 6,000 new healthcare workers that are today providing better services to expectant mothers and it is 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 with GE, USAID, and the National Primary Health Care Development Agency of Nigeria, we can achieve our goals through our Save One Million Lives programme.”
USAID Nigeria Mission Director, Michael Harvey, stated: “In Nigeria, USAID’s focus is to promote and support stronger governance, financial and human development and to serve as partners in the creation and implementation of economic and civil strategies for the benefit of all Nigerians.
“Indeed, programmes with the potential to improve the health and wellbeing of the population are a critical focus of USAID’s activities in Nigeria,” adding that USAID was proud to serve as a strategic partner to the Ministry of Health and GE Healthcare in support of the Healthymagination Mother and Child Initiative.
“The reality that we know today is unacceptable and heartbreaking—as nearly 300,000 mothers and 3 million newborns continue to die every year from causes we know how to prevent. Through this initiative, USAID is partnering to scale up cutting-edge solutions and unlock a brighter future for the next generation of Nigerian leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs.”
President and CEO, GE Healthcare Eastern and Africa Growth Markets, Skander Malcolm, said: “At GE, we recognize that it takes all different perspectives and contributions to solve a problem and when you consider Africa’s vast healthcare challenges, medical equipment alone is not enough.
“As an integral part of our commitment to Africa, we are focused on designing new models of healthcare delivery leveraging affordable technology, a significant focus on training and skills enhancement and nurturing sustainable partnerships to develop localized solutions aligned firmly with the needs of the continent.”
He added: “We are grateful to the Ministry of Health of Nigeria and USAID for their confidence in the capabilities that GE can bring to support the development of a program with the potential to improve maternal and infant survival rates. A challenge of this scale is a multi-year effort and we are fully committed to this partnership over the long-term and ultimately, to supporting better outcomes for Nigeria’s mothers and babies and their families.”
Nigeria’s progress toward improving maternal and newborn survival has been noteworthy, with the rate of maternal deaths dropping by almost half since 1990, when figures estimated 1,000 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births, compared with 584 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births in 2011.
However, in stark contrast with its counterpart ‘MINT’ countries, the rate of maternal and infant mortality today in Nigeria remains significant, at almost three times higher than Indonesia and even higher compared to Mexico and Turkey.
Moreover, maternal mortality and infant mortality rates in Nigeria are estimated to be around 30 and 15 times higher, respectively, compared with the United States and Europe.
The Healthymagination Mother and Child Initiative will give healthcare providers in Nigeria first-time access to GE portable ultrasound technology like Vscan.
Developed to provide physicians in remote areas with imaging capabilities at the point-of-care, Vscan is a pocket-sized medical tool that houses ultrasound technology and provides doctors with an immediate, non-invasive method to help visualise information about what is happening inside the body.
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