Plateau Distributes 48,000 Kits For Safer Births

Dr Nicholas Baamlong, Plateau State Commissioner for Health, has announced that the state government has procured and is currently distributing 48,000 mama kits as part of efforts to reduce maternal and infant mortality.

Baamlong made this known on Friday in Jos, during a media briefing on the activities and achievements of his office from May 2023 to date.

According to him, the free distribution of the mama kits, which contain essential delivery supplies such as sanitary pads, gloves, disinfectants, and baby clothing, is expected to encourage more pregnant women to seek antenatal care.

He added that the initiative was also aimed at increasing the number of women who choose to deliver in hospitals, thereby improving maternal and infant health outcomes.

The commissioner highlighted that between February and December 2024, the ministry, through the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) project, reached 308,413 women with Maternal, Infant, and Young Child Nutrition (MIYCN) counselling.

“This figure represents 112 per cent of the ministry’s target, reflecting the project’s strong outreach and impact during the period. Additionally, 303,088 women, also 112 per cent of the target, received Iron Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation across 170 Primary Health Care Centres (PHCs) in the state.”

He further disclosed that Intermittent Preventive Treatment (IPT 1–3) was administered to 249,928 women, 93 per cent of the target, while 879,603 children were dewormed and 1,614,216 received Vitamin A supplementation.

Baamlong also revealed that the state government had approved the recruitment of additional staff for PHCs to address the shortage of healthcare personnel.

“Gov. Caleb Mutfwang recently approved the recruitment of staff to address the pressing issue of inadequate health personnel at our various PHCs. The process has commenced, and we assure all applicants that it will be very transparent,” he said.

Plateau Distributes 48,000 Kits For Safer Births is first published on The Whistler Newspaper