1) What is safe motherhood?

Safe motherhood is all about promoting the health of mothers and newborn babies.

Put another way, safe motherhood means ensuring that all women receive the care they need to be safe and healthy throughout pregnancy and childbirth.

* Most maternal deaths could be prevented if women had access to appropriate health care during pregnancy, childbirth, and immediately afterwards.

2) Reason for initiating the safe motherhood policy

The policy was initiated because of the very high infant/maternal mortality rate in the state.

Every day, approximately 830 women die globally from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth.

With 814 deaths out of every 100,000 live births, Nigeria has the 4th highest maternal mortality rate in the world, next only to Sierra Leone, Central African Republic and Chad.

The situation of infant mortality in Nigeria is also not a pleasant one. With 69.8 infant deaths out of every 1,000 births, Nigeria is number 8 in the world in terms of high infant mortality ratio.

3) Objective of the policy

To reduce the infant/maternal mortality rate in the state. The Governor's wish is to ensure that no woman should die during pregnancy or child birth.

4) Benefits of the safe motherhood initiative

* Free registration for antenatal

* Free insecticide treated mosquito net

* Free tetanus injection

* Routine immunization for the child

* HIV/AIDS screening

* Free delivery pack which contains among other things, 1 pack of baby wipes, baby soap, Vaseline jelly, sanitary pad, dettol, cotton wool, baby towel, mucus extractor, umbilical chord gel and some relevant medications

* N2,000 at point of registration & another N2,000 at point of delivery. (This 2nd N2,000 will be given ONLY if the woman meets the conditions of keying into the safe motherhood initiative by registering in a public health facility, attending at least four sessions of ante-natal, using the insecticide treated mosquito net and delivering in a government hospital).

* N3,000 monthly incentive throughout the period of pregnancy up to two months after delivery

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