…Appoint innovation leaders
To advance Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) interventions, the Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria (MWAN), in collaboration with Lagos State and the Consortium of Development Partners, have inaugurated 14 AIM-MNCH innovation leaders.
Among them were Chairperson, Lagos State Media Advocacy Working Group, Chioma Umeha; Director of Reproductive Health and Family Planning, Folasade Oludara; Associate Professor of Community Health, LASUTH/LASUCOM, Omowunmi Bakare, and Chairman of the Ward Development Committee, Josephat Ugochukwu Ihitegbulum.
Others are Chairperson of the Interfaith Public Health Advocacy Group, Ashiru Ajoke and Programmes Head of SIID Africa Initiative for Youth Development, Khadijat Ibrahim, among others.
In her welcome address, a medical doctor and also Chairman, MWAN Lagos State Chapter, Funmi Ige, commended the innovation champions, saying they were recognised for their exceptional leadership and dedication.
Ige further explained that AIM-MNCH innovations champions were a select number of individuals chosen for their commitment, influence, and their ability to lead the advancement of Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) interventions in their respective states across the country.
The Medical Women’s Association boss elaborated that their role is to lead advocacy towards combating maternal deaths, particularly those resulting from Postpartum Haemorrhage (PPH), the leading cause of maternal mortality worldwide.
She noted that “almost every day, one woman somewhere in Nigeria dies from this fatal haemorrhage,” urging both health professionals and the wider public to act collectively.
Ige also affirmed that the project, which is going on in 16 states, focuses on reducing maternal deaths through strategic community engagement is championed by the Africa Centre of Excellence for Population Health and Policy (ACEPHAP), Bayero University Kano, in collaboration with a consortium of four partners.
“These include, ACE Network in Africa, Pathfinder International, Nigeria, Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria (MWAN), and Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI).
Special Adviser on Health to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Kemi Ogunyemi, described the AIM-MNCH innovations project as a bold assertion of local ownership following recent US cuts to international health funding.
Reflecting on the withdrawal of American aid, Ogunyemi paid tribute to ongoing support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Clinton Health Initiative, but emphasised that Lagos and Nigeria as a whole can no longer afford to rely solely on foreign donor partners.
“This must be our priority. We are not waiting for international aid,” she said.
On the other hand, Ogunyemi noted that preventing unplanned and adolescent pregnancies is inseparable from reducing maternal mortality.
She also highlighted the critical yet often overlooked role of men in consent for contraception, insisting that engaging male partners is essential if women are to access life-saving reproductive healthcare.
The newly appointed advocacy champions will spearhead awareness campaigns in their communities, engage local primary-healthcare leaders, and gather grassroots data to inform policy.
Speaking also at the ceremony, Director of Reproductive Health and Family Planning, Folasade Oludara outlined a multi-pronged approach, emphasising adolescent health, empowering the girl child and promoting family planning so that young women can decide when and how many children to have.
Oludara also highlighted Lagos’s leading national standing in maternal and child health indices, crediting a proactive administration that regards these metrics as key indicators of development.
Complementing national data, an in-house nutritional survey has pinpointed stunting hotspots. “By our next survey in two to three years, we expect to see a marked change,” she concluded.
On his part, a representative of Pathfinder International, Ibitoye Olufemi, emphasised the project’s focus on policy-oriented research and evidence-led advocacy to advance women’s health and expedite the rollout of proven MNCH innovations.
“This initiative addresses the urgent need to translate research into practice at scale,” he said.
Similarly, Technical Advisor at the Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI), Oluyemi Abodunri, who spoke at the event, urged the champions to leverage forthcoming “smart and advocacy” training and to wield newly supplied toolkits in lobbying policymakers.
However, he commended their commitment to Maternal, Newborn and Child Health and insisted that evidence-based advocacy remains vital if Nigeria is to scale interventions that save women and children.
