Niger State, MTN partner to better lives of mothers, children

The Niger government and MTN Foundation have partnered to tackle the menace of infant and maternal mortality in the state.

The partnership, which was announced during the MTNF Yellow Heart Health Forum in Minna, is consonance with the foundation’s commitment to tackle the menace by increasing awareness of the phenomenon in Nigeria and aligning with global efforts to meet the health targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

On the decision to support the government on this initiative, the Director, MTN Foundation, Alhaji Danlami Mohammed, said his organisation was pleased with the partnership geared at brightening the lives of people, especially within the community where it operates.

His words: “We take out time to identify with the plight of members of the community where we carry out our operations and we are sensitive in this regard. It is because of this that the foundation created a mandate to spend towards improving the state of healthcare, education and economic empowerment.

“Niger is part of the six states selected for the MTNF Yellow Heart initiative. It is a laudable project and we are looking forward to a healthy collaboration with the government and the good people of the state. We hope to use the Yellow Heart initiative to address predominant issues such as attitude and cultural practice that hinder women and children from accessing healthcare services in the society.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Mustapha Jibrin, said the state was excited at the collaboration.

Represented by the Director of Public Health, Dr Idris Ibrahim, the commissioner pointed out that the initiative aligns with what the current administration was doing to improve healthcare in the state.

He said: “It is in this administration that we are able to employ more than 500 healthcare workers.

“We have also improved the salary of health workers. In fact, we are one of the very few states that our salary matches that of the Federal Government. This is imperative to enable us attract and retain the best hands and we hope to keep improving.”

The MTN foundation has partnered with us on many initiatives, they supported the government to provide free eye services, they also upgraded the maternity wing of our major hospitals.

“The provision of a mobile clinic by the foundation is also a very commendable contribution that has helped to penetrate our rural areas with quality healthcare.”