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LAWG to end maternal mortality by 2018

By Paul Adunwoke
03 July 2016   |   5:08 am
Ayo Adebusoye, Chairman, LAWG, said his organisation is committed to ensuring proper awareness on the importance of family planning to reduce the high rate of maternal mortality in the country.
Pregnant woman PHOTO: Courtesy of www.globalhealth.duke.edu

Pregnant woman PHOTO: Courtesy of www.globalhealth.duke.edu

The Lagos State Working Group (LAWG) has unveiled plans to end maternal mortality among Nigerians of reproductive age, by 2018 through family planning.

Ayo Adebusoye, Chairman, LAWG, said his organisation is committed to ensuring proper awareness on the importance of family planning to reduce the high rate of maternal mortality in the country.

He said people should avoid acts that lead to maternal mortality, which include unsafe abortions, bleeding after birth, high blood pressure and convulsion in pregnancy, as all these can lead to maternal mortality, jus as early pregnancy can lead to prolonged and obstructed labour.

Adebusoye said this at the LAWG Public Health Sustainable Advocacy Initiative Meeting organised in collaboration with Pathfinder International Nigeria, held at GRA Ikeja, Lagos.

Said he: “Political leaders need to change their misconceptions for not having health issues as part of their campaign manifestos, because if health is not included, it means that our health is at risk.

“In Lagos State, we need to bring issue of health to the front burner both at the state and local council levels. What Local council executives in Lagos State can do is to make family planning consumables free, as family planning facilities are free but consumables are not. This constitutes a legal barrier for people that have time to access family planning services. So, I think that we need collaboration among all stakeholders to ensure that people have access to family planning to reduce maternal mortality.

“The media has a vital role to play in changing these misconceptions, which various people have out of ignorance, as it is said that people perish because of ignorance”.

Dr. Habib Salami, Family Planning and Reproductive Manager, Pathfinder International Nigeria, said women should seek information and visit healthcare facilities to access to family planning services, because family planning services are free at least in Lagos.

Salami said: “We do not have enough family planning trained service providers. Federal Government needs to do more to ensure that Nigeria’s contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR), is increased to above 50 percent because the higher CPR, the lower maternal mortality.

“The Federal Government targets 36 per cent of CPR, by 2018, which is very low and means that maternal mortality in Nigeria is very high. It is very important that people should have access to family planning to ensure reduction of maternal mortality in the country. Nigeria is in the second position in the world in terms of maternal mortality rate, after India. So, government need do something to reduce the rate.

“It is important that governments put in place policies to help people have access to family planning, especially at state level. State governments need to put more efforts because that is where there is huge population and it is where the services are provided. Each state should adopt national hearth care policies that support family planning services. More importantly, they should provide funding for family planning because a lot of states do not have budget for it. At the end of 2014, only 12 states in Nigeria had funding for family planning, which is very poor.”

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