FG Claims Health Gains as Maternal Deaths Fall 60%

The Federal Government has claimed that it has achieved all 41 performance targets set for the health sector under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, with 3,526 primary healthcare centres revitalised across the country.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the third Nigeria Health Sector Joint Annual Review.

Pate said work was ongoing on another 900 primary healthcare centres, while 19,758 skilled birth attendants had been recruited across 22 states.”

He said the government had also trained 78,054 frontline health workers and increased health insurance coverage from about 16 million to nearly 24 million Nigerians.

“At the beginning of this administration, Mr President set performance commitments for the health sector. I am pleased to report that we have achieved all 41 commitments,” he said.

The minister disclosed that cumulative releases under the Basic Health Care Provision Fund had reached N422.3bn as of October 2026, with N249.5bn disbursed under the current administration.

On maternal healthcare, he said skilled deliveries at supported facilities increased from 4.8 million in 2023 to 7.9 million by the second quarter of 2026, while antenatal visits rose from six million to 8.7 million.

He added that the free emergency obstetric care programme had delivered nearly 100,000 services in two years, including 80,906 caesarean sections and 6,059 vesicovaginal fistula repairs.

Pate said maternal case fatality in areas covered by the Maternal and Newborn Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative had declined by approximately 60 per cent between 2024 and 2026.

On healthcare financing, he said the government had reduced dialysis costs by up to 80 per cent for 5,106 patients, while more than 15,000 Nigerians had benefited from its free 48-hour emergency care programme.

He also disclosed that 10 pharmaceutical and medical manufacturing factories or production lines had been commissioned, six of them in 2026, as part of efforts to strengthen local production.

However, the minister acknowledged that stunting had worsened slightly, while patient satisfaction with healthcare services declined from 76 per cent in 2024 to 71 per cent in 2026.

The Federal Government also said it had reported a 60 per cent reduction in maternal deaths in communities covered by its Maternal and Newborn Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative, known as MAMII, between 2024 and 2026.

Pate attributed the reported reduction to improved access to skilled birth attendants, emergency referral services and maternal healthcare facilities under the initiative.

He said the government had recruited “19,758 skilled birth attendants across 22 states and trained 78,054 frontline health workers to strengthen service delivery.”

According to him, 91 per cent of Basic Health Care Provision Fund-supported facilities in MAMII areas now have at least two midwives or community health extension workers, compared with 12 per cent at the beginning of the intervention.

He added that “99 per cent of the facilities were connected to emergency referral systems, while 750,000 pregnant women had been mapped and linked to functional health facilities.

“Within MAMII areas, BHCPF facilities have also recorded a reduction of approximately 60 per cent in maternal case fatality between 2024 and 2026.”

Pate disclosed that emergency transport services were operating in 171 of the initiative’s 172 local government areas, transporting 104,566 women and newborns.

He said the government had also re-equipped more than 300 secondary healthcare facilities for comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care, alongside over 500 primary healthcare centres for basic emergency obstetric and newborn care.

On the free emergency obstetric care programme, the minister said, “nearly 100,000 services had been delivered in two years, including 80,906 caesarean sections, approximately 9,100 newborn services and 6,059 vesicovaginal fistula repairs.”

He added that deaths from obstetric emergencies had declined by 22 per cent in participating facilities.

The minister said skilled deliveries recorded at BHCPF-supported facilities increased from 4.8 million in 2023 to 7.9 million by the end of the second quarter of 2026, while fourth antenatal care visits rose from six million to 8.7 million.

However, he acknowledged that Nigeria still faced significant maternal and newborn health challenges, stressing the need to sustain investments in healthcare workers, emergency referrals and functional health facilities.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, said almost eight million additional Nigerians had been enrolled in health insurance under the administration, including more than three million vulnerable persons.

He said the government was targeting at least 90 per cent functional primary healthcare centres by 2031, 40 per cent health insurance coverage and the expansion of the maternal and newborn mortality reduction initiative to all 774 local government areas.

Salako said the annual review, themed “Together to Higher Grounds,” must ensure that health sector data is translated into measurable improvements in people’s lives.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Daju Kachollum, said all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory had conducted their respective annual health sector reviews.

She, however, raised concerns over persistent health workforce shortages, poor maternal and child health indicators and weaknesses in emergency response, disclosing that only 22 per cent of public health events achieved the seven-day early response target.

The three-day review, holding from November 10 to 12, is part of the implementation of the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative launched in December 2023 to strengthen healthcare delivery, financing, accountability and access to quality services across the country.