Nigeria loses 68,000 women yearly to pregnancy, childbirth complications

The figure represents 23 per cent of the global deaths due to pregnancy and child birth complications.

Prof. Dolapo Lufadeju, the National Coordinator, Rotary International Project on National Family Planning Campaign, says Nigeria is losing 68,000 women yearly as a result of pregnancy and child birth complications.

Lufadeju disclosed this on Thursday during the South West Family Planning Campaign Project of Rotary International in Ibadan.

He said the figure represented 23 per cent of the global deaths due to pregnancy and child birth complications.

“This implies that for every five women that die as a result of pregnancy and child birth, one is a Nigerian and this is scary and Roatary International is upset about it.

“Rotary International has been an organisation with national network of volunteers to be able to mobilise and create awareness in communities, will do community dialogue and training among others to reduce maternal and child birth mortality.

“We are in South West of the meeting to bring stakeholders together to plan and strategise on steps to be taken in the next three years in order to reduce maternal and child birth death, “he said.

Lufadeju also said that Rotary International was partnering with the Society of Gynaecologists and Obstetrics of Nigeria (SOGON) and Ministry of Health to to achieve its objective.

“We will deploy the zeal and commitment and with Rotary standard, we are going to innovate and propose solution to the challenges.

“We are going to do advocacy in the community with traditional rulers , political leaders , religious leaders as well as train doctors among others.

“Our aim is to reduce maternal deaths and everyone has to know that the issue concerns us all,” Lufadeju said.

Mr Olugbemiga Olowu, South West Coordinator of the project, and Dr Adebayo Adeniyi, SOGON Coordinator in Ekiti, said in separate remarks that they were committed to ensuring that the family planning project was being executed smoothly.

According to the duo, available data indicates that Nigeria has very low prevalence care for family planning which Rotary will address.