21 August 2008
Lagos — The Federal Government has set aside N6 billion to facilitate free medical care for children and pregnant women in six states, Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Dr. Dogo Muhammad, said in Minna, Niger State yesteday.
Muhammad, who was speaking at an advocacy meeting with the Niger State Executive Council, said the fund was received from the Millenium Development Goals (MDG) fund.
He said the money would be used to support the MDG-Maternal and Child Health Project in Gombe, Niger, Sokoto, Bayelsa, Oyo and Imo.
He said that under the project, all children under five and pregnant women would enjoy free medical services.
He said the decision to undertake the project was informed by the increasing child and maternal mortality rate in the country.
"Today in Nigeria, according to available statistics, 191 children die out of every 100,000 births and 1,100 women die out of every 100,000 deliveries," he said.
The secretary said that the project was aimed at reducing the country's child and maternal mortality rate of 63 deaths per 100,000 births.
He said that the project was expected to cover 600,000 children and pregnant women in the six states.
"More than 100,000 people are expected to benefit in each of the pilot states," he added.
Each of the benefiting states will get N700 million for the project in the first year of operation, Muhammad said.
Governor Babangida Aliyu said the state had already embarked on free medicare for children under five, pregnant women and the aged.
Aliyu said the state would match the grant from the MDG office with an additional N2.7 billion to ensure that all vulnerable groups enjoyed free medicare.
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Good move but my fear is that if Dr. Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello lays her hand on this money may be another trip would be planned to share the healthcare fund. Please keep her and her likes away from this fund so the targeted people would get it.