Jigawa’s race against maternal mortality

Despite being counted among the poorest states in the federation, the government of Jigawa State has considered the challenge as a booster to it to fight the menace of maternal mortality in the state. In this respect, however, the administration has put many measures in motion with a view to address the situation. The efforts […]

Despite being counted among the poorest states in the federation, the government of Jigawa State has considered the challenge as a booster to it to fight the menace of maternal mortality in the state.

In this respect, however, the administration has put many measures in motion with a view to address the situation. The efforts are being made through various avenues, including the state’s Ministry of Women Affairs.

Since inception, various projects, aimed at improving the living condition of women and children in particular, have been made by the State Ministry of Women Affairs to achieve the desired objectives of reducing the rate of maternal mortality rate in the state.

So far, Pyramid Trust has observed that a lot has been achieved in that respect. Today, in Jigawa state, a programme called Save Motherhood Demand Side Initiative (SMID) has been introduced.

The Ministry of Women affairs, Pyramid Trust learnt, has been identifying problems bedevilling women and children in rural areas and subsequently creating some initiatives that would alleviate their sufferings and or improve their livelihood.

The programme involves both traditional title holders and the communities as well with which a kind of advocacy committees are being formed at ward levels. This kind of committee is being called Haihuwa Lafiya in Hausa (safe delivery). It comprises of four men and one woman.

The members of the committee must be well known people in their respective communities and the female members of the committees must be local birth attendants, whom their main duty in the committees is to be going round villages enlightening women on the importance of patronizing hospital  for ante natal and post natal care.

Pyramid Trust further learnt that, it was based on this that the state government resolved for the training of local birth attendants to improve their ability of handling women in labour in a modern and hygienic way. In this respect about 500 local birth attendants from across the 27 local governments of the state have benefited from the training exercise.   

Further investigation by this reporter indicated that, so far the Haihuwa Lafiya Committees were formed in about 200 communities across the 27 local governments of the state. And the committees are doing their best in the discharge of their primary duties, which in turn is yielding positive result to the reduction of maternal mortality rate in the state.

It was gathered that, with the support the Ministry is receiving from the state government; more communities would be involved in the SMID programme this year.

Pyramid Trust observed that members of the Haihuwa Lafiya Committee were trained on how to carry out their responsibilities as advocacy representatives of the Ministry in various Local Government Areas of the state.

The birth attendant members of the committees, for instance, were taught how to detect danger signs of pregnancy complications and were mandated for writing a data on anything related to pregnant women and report back to the nearby clinic and or hospital for further necessary action.

This, Pyramid Trust noticed, had made it a routine exercise upon the birth attendant members of the committees to go round their respective villages assessing the condition of pregnant women for them to report their health status to the nearby health facility.

It is also part of the committees’ duties to rush to the hospital any pregnant woman that develops complications.

Interestingly, with the introduction of the Gunduma Health System by the present administration, a programme under the state Ministry of Health, things are getting better now. More women in the state are patronizing hospitals and the rate of maternal mortality is drastically declining, according to the state Commissioner of Women Affairs, Hajiya Fatima Widi Jallo.

Also to ensure success of the programme, the state Ministry of Women Affairs has introduced a special advocacy programme in the government owned local radio stations, which was aimed at sensitizing the communities in the state on the importance of patronizing hospital.

The programme, Pyramid Trust gathered, was being aired in three languages that included Hausa, Fulani and Kanuri. The main content of the massage was enlightening the men on the need to allow their wives to go to the hospital for ante natal and post natal care.

Speaking on Jigawa’s new approach to the fight against maternal mortality rate in the state, the Commissioner of Women Affairs, Hajiya Fatima Widi Jallo said the approach was yielding positive results inthe lives of the rural communities.

Hajiya Fatima further noted that, the radio programme awareness campaign was introduced because the Ministry had learnt that a large portion of men, particularly in the rural areas were ignorant of the importance of allowing their wives to go to hospital for ante natal and post natal care.

Hajiya Jallo explained further that, about 30 of Opel Vectra model vehicles were purchased last year by the state government and distributed to various centres of the proragramme for conveying women in labour to hospital during any pregnancy complications.

While the state government purchased the vehicles, she added, Local Governments were responsible for their maintenance.

The commissioner explained that government’s intention was to improve awareness among its citizens on the need to adopt the culture of patronizing hospitals, not only during or after labour, but whenever they discover unusual signs in their body system.

Apart from the funds being released by the state government for the SMID programme, the commissioner attested that the programme was also being funded by the Millennium development Goals (MDGs).