Nigeria launches national guidelines to reduce maternal deaths

In a move to reduce maternal deaths and improve childbirth outcomes, the Nigerian government has launched six national policy documents aimed at ensuring safer delivery for women across Nigeria.

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The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, unveiled the documents in Abuja on Wednesday in commemoration of the 2025 Safe Motherhood Day, themed, “Innovating for safer birth: A collective responsibility to crash maternal mortality.”

Safe Motherhood Day is an annual event marked on 11 April to create awareness and generate public dialogue on the best strategies and interventions that promote maternal and newborn health and survival within an integrated continuum of care.

Globally, Nigeria remains one of the most affected countries, accounting for about 20 per cent of maternal and child deaths, according to the World Bank.

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Implementation

The newly launched policy documents include a national Safe Motherhood Strategy, clinical protocols for managing postpartum haemorrhage, pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, essential gynaecological skills manuals, a national strategy to improve the quality of reproductive and maternal care, and a training manual on managing obstetric fistula.

Describing safe motherhood as both a moral and developmental priority, Mr Pate said no woman should lose her life while giving birth and no child should enter the world only to face preventable suffering.

He explained that this year’s slogan, “Care for Moms, Hope for the Babies,” reflects both a rallying cry and a national obligation.

He said that maternal and newborn deaths have long threatened families and undermined development, noting that the new policy rollout is intended to change that narrative.

Mr Pate emphasised that under the Health Sector Renewal Initiative, the government is already taking concrete steps to fix systemic challenges that have made childbirth risky for many women.

According to Mr Pate, the national Safe Motherhood Strategy (2024–2028), outlines multi-level interventions to safeguard maternal health.

Other documents launched include guidelines for managing postpartum haemorrhage and hypertensive disorders during pregnancy, as well as updated manuals to enhance the skills of healthcare workers in reproductive health.

A new quality-of-care framework was also introduced, aimed at promoting respectful, high-quality care for women, children, and adolescents.

Mr Pate also revealed that, a training manual was unveiled to guide doctors and nurses in providing holistic and evidence-based care for women suffering from obstetric fistula.

“These documents represent our government’s promise to not just respond to emergencies, but to build a resilient, people-centred health system that can anticipate and prevent them,” he said.

Collaboration

Mr Pate further urged stakeholders, governors, traditional rulers, healthcare workers, community leaders, development partners, and private sector to join hands in making safe motherhood a reality in every village, every ward, and every home.

In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary at the ministry, Daju Kachollom noted that maternal mortality is not just a statistic; it is a personal tragedy for families, a setback for communities, and a reflection of health system gaps we must urgently address.

Ms Kachollom, who was represented by the Director of Family Health at the ministry, Binyerem Ukaire emphasised the need to forge partnerships, share innovations, and accelerate solutions for a safer Nigeria, where every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, and every mother and baby thrives.

“Safe Motherhood Day is a solemn reminder of the journey many women and girls still take through pregnancy and childbirth, sometimes with risk, sometimes with fear, and too often without adequate support. But it is also a celebration of the progress we have made, and the resilience of mothers, healthcare workers, and communities who continue to push forward.

“Today, I am proud to highlight the progress we have made through the Health Sector Renewal Initiative (HSRII). This bold reform agenda has begun to yield concrete results,” she said.

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She reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to reducing maternal mortality and morbidity, promoting respectful and inclusive maternity care, expanding access to reproductive and maternal health services, especially in rural and underserved areas, and supporting healthcare workers.

Also, the Country Representative of the World Health Organisation, Walter Mulombo urged the government to continue to invest highly in maternal and newborn health services to expand equitable access to quality care, especially in hard-to-reach areas which are most affected by mortality in mothers and newborns.

Mr Mulombo encouraged the government to enact and uphold laws that protect women and children and their rights including maternity protection and access to sexual and reproductive health services.

“We’d like the government to address underlying social and economic factors that drive inequity.

“In collaboration with all of us partners, I would like to call all of us to strengthen accountability, coordination, innovation at all levels in support of the Sector Wide Approach and the health transformation that is quite unique in a country like Nigeria,” he noted.