In Nigeria, a mother dies every seven minutes at birth!

In Nigeria, a mother dies every seven minutes at birth!

in Nigeria, the country with the highest maternal mortality, a woman dies every seven minutes during or immediately after birth. An estimated 75,000 women died last year, which corresponds to almost a third of all global birth-related deaths, as Kosmo. The reasons for these alarming numbers are diverse and range from bleeding after birth and complications during childbirth to high blood pressure and improperly carried out abortions.

The Nigerian population of 218 million people has only 121,000 midwives, while the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a number of 700,000. This undersupply is an essential part of the country's chronically overloaded health system, which is also weakened by a dilapidated infrastructure and unaffordable treatment costs.

fate of affected women

The effects of this crisis are devastating for the families concerned. Women like Jamila Ishak have chosen home births because they could not receive any help in public clinics. In contrast, Chinwendu Obiejesi was able to make positive birth experience through private care. The fate of Nafisa Salahu was tragically, who was in labor for three days during a medical strike; Despite Caesarean section, she lost her baby.

Daily, 200 families in Nigeria lose a mother, daughter or sister because of the current health crisis. In order to counteract this, the Nigerian government launched the “Mami” program in 2023, which aims to reduce the mother's mortality in 172 endangered communities. This includes the systematic recording of pregnant women, regular check -ups and the expansion of transport options to health institutions.

challenges in health care

The WHO estimates the mother's mortality of Nigeria on 814 deaths per 100,000 live births, with the lifelong risk of dying for a Nigerian woman, dying during pregnancy or birth. For comparison: In developed countries, this risk is 1 to 4,900 (see Joghr). The high level of maternal mortality is also provided by three main causes of delay: the decision -making process for the use of medical care, the accessibility of a facility and the waiting for qualified help.

There are around 34,000 primary health centers in Nigeria, which, however, often do not offer enough capacities. The accessibility and the perceived quality of the services play a crucial role: positive experiences and trust in medical staff are crucial for the use of health services. Many women choose home births due to poor experiences or abuse of state institutions. Cultural practices, such as female seclusion in North Nigeria, reinforce this tendency.

perspectives and necessary measures

Nigerian health policy faces the challenge of not only ensuring quantitative but also qualitative improvements in health care. Researchers recommend a holistic approach that takes into account both the offer and the demand side in order to increase the quality of health care. In addition, the situation requires substantial investments to achieve sustainable improvement in mothers mortality. All of this happens against the background that Nigeria has to struggle with a chronic shortage of doctors: with around 89,800 trained doctors, the ratio of 0.39 doctors per 1,000 inhabitants corresponds to far below the global average of 1.71 doctors per 1,000 inhabitants ( laenderdaten.info ).

In order to sustainably reduce the mothers in Nigeria, both state measures and the trust of the population must be promoted in the health system. The health crisis requires an immediate need for action to protect mothers and newborns.