Otti also said that the initiative was necessitated by the need to boost coverage of high-impact interventions for mother and child health.
The Wife of Abia Governor, Mrs Priscilla Otti, on Friday, formally launched the first round of the 2024 maternal, newborn and child health week in the state.
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In a speech at the event in Umuahia, organised by the Abia State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (ASPHDA), in partnership with the Ministry of Health, Otti said that the programme held great health prospects for women and children in the state.
The governor’s wife, represented by the Wife of the Deputy Governor, Mrs Adaeze Emetu, said that the programme would help to strengthen initiatives focused on improving the health of women and children.
She said: “Maternal and child deaths have remained on the increase lately and annoyingly these deaths are preventable if we all work together.
“Mortality from any preventable cause is a violation of the individual’s basic human right and must be stopped.”
Otti also said that the initiative was necessitated by the need to boost coverage of high-impact interventions for mother and child health.
She described the programme as a simple cost effective mechanism for preventive and curative interventions for improving maternal and child health.
According to her, activities that will help in reducing the unacceptably high rate of maternal mortality will be supported by the State Government.
Otti called on health workers to improve their knowledge and interpersonal communication skills to promote effective healthcare service delivery in Abia.
In a remark, the Executive Secretary of ASPHDA, Dr Kalu Kalu, said that the programme aimed at delivering a package of basic interventions to women of childbearing age and children under five.
Kalu said that the basic interventions had proven to be highly effective in reducing maternal mortality and improving mother and child health.
“It is a week-long delivery of maternal and child survival interventions, which complement routine health services by ensuring that basic care reaches all mothers and children,” he said.
He also said that the programme would focus on reducing morbidity and mortality from preventable causes and improve the well-being of beneficiaries.
In an address, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr Ifeyinwa Uma-Kalu, described the basic health interventions provided for women and children as a step in the right direction.
Uma-Kalu, represented by Dr Borke Okali, urged the people to embrace the interventions and teachings provided in the various health facilities.
The Chief of UNICEF, Enugu Field Office, Mrs Juliet Chiluwe, expressed delight over the introduction of Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week.
Chiluwe, represented by Dr Ephraim Chukwu, commended the government for evolving such a health programme.
She said that the programme would enhance the provision of high-impact and cost-effective interventions to women and children in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the interventions to be provided during the programme include, vitamin supplementation, deworming, screening of children for malnutrition and immunisation, amongst others.