By Omowumi Omotosho
The Kwara State Government recently celebrated a significant public health milestone: the lowest child mortality rate in Nigeria, with only 2 deaths per 1,000 live births, as announced by Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (KSPHCDA), Professor Nusirat Elelu.
The announcement, made on May 9, 2025, during the First Quarterly Meeting of the State Task Force on Immunization and Primary Health Care, was attributed by officials to recent government initiatives.
This paradoxically came after the Kwara State Government expressed concern over the worsening shortage of medical doctors in the state’s health facilities, blaming it on the ongoing “Japa” brain drain syndrome which prompted the approval of the recruitment of 40 medical Doctors, 25 Pharmacists and 60 Nurses to boost healthcare service delivery in the state.
While this recruitment is being hailed as a significant step in addressing staff shortages, an authoritative source speaking under anonymity disclosed to National Pilot that medical staff shortages are still affecting critical care, particularly at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the General Hospital in Ilorin.
The source revealed that, due to the shortage of staff, the NICU is no longer receiving outborn babies. “They only focus on inborn babies,” the source said. “All outborn babies are now being sent to the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) or private facilities for further care.”
However, investigations by National Pilot revealed that the state’s recent achievement may owe more to foundational efforts laid years earlier by non-governmental partners and international development agencies, rather than solely to current state policies.
The foundation for Kwara’s improved maternal and child health outcomes was set between 2016 and 2021 through the collaborative efforts of the Wellbeing Foundation Africa (WBFA), the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM), and more recently, the EU-funded Strengthening Access to Reproductive and Adolescent Health (EU-SARAH) programme, with support from UNICEF.
Notably, in January 2018, Mrs. Toyin Saraki, wife of the former Senate President and founder of WBFA, emphasized the importance of training and retraining health workers as the key to reducing infant and maternal mortality.
At a landmark training event in Ilorin, over 600 healthcare professionals were equipped with life-saving skills as part of the Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (EmONC) programme, a joint initiative between WBFA and LSTM. Saraki stressed that thousands of health workers had also received in-house training to reinforce these efforts.
“These trainings started in 2015 and were designed to modernize health care delivery and emergency response, particularly for mothers and newborns,” she said via a representative.
Health professionals from six LGAs, including Ilorin West and Offa, were trained with plans to expand coverage across the entire state.
Further amplifying the state’s health outcomes was the intervention of the European Union through the EU-SARAH programme. In collaboration with Kwara State and UNICEF, 60 secondary healthcare providers were recently trained in Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEMONC).
Prof. Abiodun Adeniran of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, who led the training, said the 14-day intensive course addressed critical maternal emergencies that, if mishandled, often result in death. “Most maternal deaths are preventable if complications are managed properly and timely,” he explained. “This programme focuses on equipping healthcare workers to handle such emergencies efficiently.”
Dr. Fatai Olaniyi, a co-facilitator, noted that while government efforts are commendable, sustaining progress will require continuous investment in life-saving tools and clinical capacity. Dr. Kafayat Kofo, the EU-SARAH Programme Manager in Kwara, reiterated that the training’s goal was not just skill acquisition but lasting systemic change in maternal care.
While the Kwara State Government’s recent health workforce recruitment and free services are important steps forward, National Pilot’s findings suggest that the low child mortality rate is not a sudden success but the result of nearly a decade of sustained, evidence-based interventions led by development partners and healthcare advocates.
