Govt Holds Sensitization Meeting for Nursing Mothers

An orientation and sensitization meeting for nursing mothers and pregnant women from selected communities was on Tuesday held in Abuja.

Executive Secretary, FCT Primary Health Care Development Board, Dr. Rilwanu Mohammed, informed participants that Nigeria accounts for 10 per cent of the world's maternal and under -five years old mortality rates.

He said the risk of a woman dying from child birth is put at ratio 1:13 in Nigeria, compared to 1: 61 in other developing countries and 1: 29,800 in Sweden.

According to him, for every woman who dies during childbirth in Nigeria, another 30 women suffer long term chronic related illness, adding that in 2008, Nigeria was among the six countries that accounted for more than half of all the maternal deaths worldwide.

He said his board is leading the campaign to ensure that communities improve their health status in the FCT.

The executive secretary said the meeting is part of the collaborative efforts between the World Health Organisation, Obafemi Awolowo Teaching Hospital, Glaxosmithkline and the FCTA to implement a community based package of interventions that will help impact positively on the lives of women and children in the territory.

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