Following a meeting at the International Maternal and Newborn Health Conference in May 2023 between a delegation from the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) and the Safer Births Consortium, the FMoH convened a subsequent day-long meeting in November 2023 to discuss the potential implementation of the Safer Births Bundle of Care program to Nigeria.
Objectives of the meeting:
- Introduce Maternal and Newborn Health Stakeholders in Nigeria to the Safer Births Bundle of Care program and its results so far in Tanzania
- Explore potential for implementation of the Safer Births Bundle of Care program in Nigeria
- Based upon potential and interest, develop plans and next steps for implementation
The meeting was attended by over 40 participants, including relevant governmental department heads, professional associations, key global funders, NGOs, regulatory bodies and UN organizations.
In the meeting Dr Benjamin Kamala and Dr Paschal Mdoe – members of the Safer Births Consortium, based at founding implementation institution Haydon Lutheran Hospital – presented on the results and lessons learnt from Phase 1 of the Safer Births Bundle of Care implementation in Tanzania. Dr Kamala and Dr Mdoe shared the remarkable results so far, including reduction in maternal mortality by more than 50%. Final results from phase 1 are expected to be published early 2024.
Delegates of the meeting also heard from the Federal Ministry of Health who presented the national ambitions and targets for maternal and newborn mortality, including ideas around how the Safer Births Bundle of Care program could be integrated into the existing plans. There was then a chance to work as groups, generating ideas for how to engage state-level stakeholders and where to start an implementation.