Mandate Secretary, Health Services and Environmental Secretariat (HSES), Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Dr Dolapo Fasawe, said that the Administration has implemented several strategic interventions to scale up both basic and comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care across all levels of healthcare in the nation’s capital.
The Mandate Secretary spoke at a vital dissemination session in Abuja, hosted by FCT Hospital Management Board (HMB), for the unveiling of the final report on the Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Neonatal Care (CEmONC) assessment.
It held in collaboration with key partners such as World Health Organization (WHO), Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynecology and Obstetrics (JHPIEGO), National Health Service (NHS) and SWAP.
The initiative stems from alarming statistics indicating that Nigeria continues to record one of the highest maternal and neonatal mortality rates globally.
The session focused on evaluating the readiness of selected secondary health facilities to deliver the essential signal functions of comprehensive emergency obstetric and neonatal care.
Represented by the Director General (DG), FCT HMB, Dr Olugbenga Bello, the Mandate Secretary listed some of the interventions by FCTA as quality improvement activities, free health insurance enrollment for pregnant women and vulnerable children, and renovation of maternity wards.
She reaffirmed the Secretariat’s commitment to prioritizing maternal, neonatal, and child healthcare.
Dr Fasawe emphasized that the findings from the assessment align with the Secretariat’s vision for universal access to high-quality healthcare for all residents of the FCT, regardless of creed, socio-economic status, or location.
Also speaking during the event, the Country Director, Jhpiego, Dr. Okoli Chibu, reiterated the organization’s commitment to drastically reducing maternal and neonatal mortality rates.
She explained that the assessment was conducted across all 36 states, including the FCT, and while one hospital per Local Government Area (LGA) was initially targeted, nine hospitals were ultimately assessed in the FCT, with a particular focus on Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) due to its large population.
The nine are in Wuse, Gwarinpa, Nyanya, Bwari, Karshi, Kuje, Kwali, Zuba, and Abaji.
Dr. Chibu expressed her gratitude to the Mandate Secretary for the support that made the assessment process smooth and stress-free, as well as to the DG, HMB, and the SWAP FCT focal person for their collaboration.
Discussions during the session revolved around three key objectives, one of them being in the sharing of results.
On this, they agreed to present comprehensive findings from the CEmONC assessment and the summary of the Bill of Quantities (BoQ) to relevant stakeholders, thereby enabling evidence-based decision-making.
The second was in identifying gaps and opportunities, where the parties highlighted existing service delivery gaps and agreed to explore opportunities for policy reform, resource mobilization, and sustainable funding aimed at improving maternal and newborn health outcomes.
The final objective was in the area of strategic stakeholder engagement to facilitate dialogue among stakeholders in order to generate actionable strategies and secure commitments for enhancing CEmONC service delivery and accessibility.
All partners agreed on the need for continued collaboration to prioritize improvements that will ensure health facilities are fully equipped and ready to provide quality emergency obstetric and neonatal care services.
