The Ogun State Government has expressed its determination to immunize over two million children from age 0-5 and 270,000 pregnant women during its ongoing Maternal Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW).
Governor Ibikunle Amosun gave this assurance during the flagging off of July 2017 round of Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW), held at Makun Primary Health Centre, Sagamu, in Sagamu Local Government Area of the State.
Governor Amosun, who was represented by his Deputy, Chief (Mrs.) Yetunde Onanuga, said the present administration had targeted hundred of thousands of women to benefit from the people-orientated health intervention programme, saying MNCHW initiative was specifically designed to reduce maternal and child mortality in the State.
‘’Let me add that we will continue to focus on people-oriented health intervention that will touch ordinary citizens directly by providing quality health care that is accessible to all’’. He said.
Earlier in his remarks, Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye, enjoined women and mothers of children from ages 0-5 to take advantage of the programme, highlighting some of the free health services to be provided to include: routine immunization, de-worming, malnutrition testing, vitamin a supplementation as well as free counselling and testing on HIV/AIDs and health education on key household practices.
Ipaye noted further that as part of measures put in place to boost primary health care service delivery, the present administration would continue to build and renovate defective health centres, employ new personnel, train and retrain existing health workers, provide drugs, maintain cold and central medical stores in the State.
He added that the state government had adopted “Demand Side Strategy” which people could have access to health care service delivery especially through the Community Based Health Insurance Scheme (CBHIS), “Araya” noted that over 15 thousand people had keyed into the programme since its introduction.
Ipaye noted that both private and government health facilities had been involved in this scheme which directly funded by the state, saying that once you have registered with the scheme, automatically you have qualified for free health care services at the designated hospitals in the state.
In his address, Chairman, Sagamu Local Government Area, Hon. Felix Femi Gafaru, applauded the effort of the State government for making primary healthcare accessible to the most vulnerable group especially pregnant women and children, noting that the step would improve the quality of life of the people.
Responding, a beneficiary, Mrs. Iyabo Adegoke, hailed the government for bringing healthcare services to the doorstep of the less privilege in the society, saying that it was an indication that government was committed to reducing drastically maternal, child mortality rate in the state.