Nigeria: Big economy, high maternal mortality

Nigeria, now Africa’s biggest economy after it rebased its gross domestic product in 2014, is still battling with high maternal mortality rates with as much as 560 women losing their lives per 100,00o births.

This statistic makes Nigeria the 12th worst place to give birth in Africa, with countries a quarter of its size, such as Gambia, having less women dying from child birth, a research done by Africa, Health, Human & Social Development Information Service (Afri-Dev.Info) has shown.

According to the research, soci0-economic factors as high poverty rates and gender disparity – including the lack of education of women, poor attitudes towards women’s health, early and forced marriages – contribute greatly to Nigeria’s high mortality rate.

“The underlying causes of maternal mortality include underage/child/forced “marriage&underage/adolescent pregnancies- girls under 18 are more at risk than older women,” Afri-Dev info said in the report.

“The risk of maternal mortality is highest for adolescent girls under 15 years old. Complications in pregnancy and childbirth are leading cause of death among adolescent girls in developing countries.”

The organisation said accessible health systems and skilled healthcare workers can effectively reduce the maternal deaths, given that most medical conditions that can increase the chances of maternal mortality – anaemia, nutritional status, malaria, hepatitis, heart disease;=, HIV/AIDS – can be effectively treated, managed or improved with good health systems and trained practitioners.

Possible solutions

Afri Dev info said all women and girls must have access to reproductive and sexual health education and services, including family planning, contraception, safe reproduction and abortion services to the full extent of the law and quality post-abortion care.