To commemorate this year’s International Day of the Midwife on Tuesday, Toyin Saraki, wife of Senate President, Bukola Saraki and UN Population Fund highlighted the important role that midwives play in the health sector as well as the need to provide better working conditions for them.

Dr Dienne Keita, Resident Representative, UN Population Fund (UNFPA), advocated for adequate policy framework and working condition for midwives to ensure enhanced maternal and neonatal indices in Nigeria in Abuja.

The country representative underscored the need to expand midwifery programmes, maintain high global standard and promote enabling environment to effectively serve the need of a woman and her family.

She noted that midwives have supported many women to exercise their sexual and reproductive health services.
Keita said the services help to ensure healthy, wanted pregnancy and safe delivery, but “yet far too many women die in Nigeria due to the lack of adequate access to reproductive health services’’.

“UNFPA strongly supports the training of midwives in more than 100 countries including Nigeria.

“In 2009 UNFPA in collaboration with partners support midwifery services and training in Nigeria. UNFPA also sends the National Midwifery Association to the training on how the association can enhance regular midwifery framework to ensure accountability,’’ Keita said.

She said the theme for 2018 is: “Midwife: Leading the way with quality care’’, resonates with UNFPA key midwife strategic direction of quality, equity and leadership.

According to her, UNFPA in collaboration with the National Association of Nurses and Midwives provided free medical outreach to hundreds of women and children in Gwagwa and Rigasa communities in line with theme of the event.

The benefitting communities were located within the Federal Capital Territory and Kaduna State, respectively.

Earlier, Mr Abdulrafiu Adeniyi, National President, National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, decried the lingering crises and industrial action within the health sector.

Adeniyi said the association would work to ensure that everything was put in place to prevent industrial actions in the health sector.

He therefore called on government and other key stakeholders to think proactively on the best way to keep industrial disharmony in health sector at bay.

Mrs Toyin Saraki, wife of the President of the Senate and Founder, Well Being Foundation, said the evidence shows that midwives can lead the way with quality and equity in healthcare delivery.

“We are not only celebrating the importance of midwives within the health sector but we are showing the evidence that midwives can bring the change we need to deliver quality care to people,’’ Saraki said.

She said the foundation had inaugurated a major WASH campaign in collaboration with global water 2020, WHO and other partners.

She added that the campaign aimed at taking hygiene to health facilities to wipe out sepsis and enhance the survival rate of women and children in the country.

Saraki noted that the expertise had shown that Nigerian midwives were key health professionals we can trust to take healthcare delivery to the grassroots.

May 5 is the internationally recognised day for highlighting the work of midwives.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) introduced the idea of the ‘International Day of the Midwife’ following suggestions and discussion among Midwives Associations in the late 1980s.

The ICM then launched the initiative formally in 1992.