Infant and maternal mortality have been a scourge which has limited the population growth of the nation since her independence.
The situation which is of great concern to the nation's health sector is yet to receive a final solution which will afford every Nigerian child and mother the right to live.
Several attempts have being made by different administrations to achieve this one goal which has incessantly proved abortive for the reoccurring reasons that the "aims" are turned against the aim.
Based on this issue of misplaced priority, children under five years and potential Nigerian mothers die for undeserved deaths. To put things in order, world leaders in 2010 met and collectively proclaimed an ambitious target aimed at reducing infant maternal mortality by two-thirds in 2015.
While infant mortality was tagged Millennium Development Goals (MDG-4), maternal mortality answered Millennium Development Goals (MDG-5).
The MDGs are eight in all. They are MDG-1, reducing extreme poverty; MDG-2, universal primary education; MDG-3, gender and women empowerment; MDG-4, reduction of child mortality; MDG-5, reduction of maternal mortality; MDG-6, combating HIV/AIDS and other diseases; MDG-7, environmental sustainability and MDG-8, developing global partnership for development.
Expectedly, in Nigeria, politicians, government officials, healthcare providers, counsellors, Non-government Organizations (NGOs) and the civil society focused on the latest refrain: Millennium Development Goals.
As a result of the issues of poor health status in Nigeria and other African countries, World Health Organisation (WHO), the United Nation's Children's Fund, (UNICEF) and other multilateral donor agencies released funds to many developing nations including Nigeria, to enable her improve her health sector.
It will be recounted also that stakeholders like the Bill and Mellinda Gate Foundation have not left any stone unturned in helping Africa to achieve this common goal. Some months ago the foundation set out about $ 500,000 for the best state to improve in health care system. Also during the UN day celebration in Nigeria, state governors were urged to contribute to develop the health system in their states and receive a reward in 2012 UN day celebration.
Barely four years to the target year of 2015, would one ask how far Nigeria has gone in reducing infant maternal mortality? A fearful statistics still toll the result charts. In Nigeria, maternal mortality ratio is about 1,100 deaths per 100,000 live births when juxtaposed with developed nations like Japan, Germany, Spain, Canada, Italy, United Kingdom and the United States.
In 2007, a report on Integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Strategy by the Federal Ministry of Health, revealed that Nigeria loses 2,300 under-five-year old and 145 women of child bearing age daily.
Dr. Emmanuel Okwe, a Paediatrist has said that Nigeria has one of the poorest maternal and child care services. "Nigeria is one of the poorest countries in health care services. It is in this system that you see intolerable attitudes from health practitioners against what is obtainable in developed countries. Child bearing in most rural areas of the country is a dangerous gamble. Most maternal deaths take place at home after unsupervised deliveries," he stated
These problems are caused by "lack of skilled birth attendants, low Human resource for health, poor basic healthcare facilities, government's inability to close economic gaps, low female literacy rates and acute shortage of health professionals" he pointed out.
The report showed that the following factors were responsible for the increase in infant maternal mortality in the country also 'delay in seeking care when complications arise, reaching care when decisions are made, assessing care on arrival at healthcare facilities and referring care from where it is initiated to where it can be completed' where also said to be problems caused by naivety of pregnant women in rural areas.
He further stated that "What we need most is to raise awareness in the rural areas to practice safe motherhood. This is possible even in a dicey situation like ours."
At the federal level, this grotesque health situation has being taken care of enough that much attention should be focused on the states. It is saddening that our political leaders only make promises and not deliver. During campaigns in the country we see a situation where political aspirants make promises with their lives to the people. Most of those promises are healthcare development for the people. which only become unrealistic and we see a situation where the people in the rural areas depend only on federal hospital in their states.
The question which comes to the mind always is "if all Nigerians dwell in the city, what becomes the fate of our villages which reminds us of our culture and heritage?"
Proper awareness programmes are not yet organised to the rural areas to enable dwellers understands what the goal of the federal government is. This admittedly has to be the job of the state medical systems and this is yet to begin in most states in the country. until the state governors are compelled to improve the health system in their states the country may still be running round the circle with hope to achieve these MDGs before 2015.
We do not have enthusiastic governors who would stop at nothing in ensuring that their subjects gain ample health care services yet.
Good enough the voluntary international bodies have come up with a compelling idea to see the possibility of an improved medical system especially in the area of infant and maternal care.
The federal government can learn from this initiative by setting up such challenge to private hospitals in Nigeria especially those in rural communities, it would go along way in boosting her effort in the fight against infant and maternal mortality.
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