January 11, 2013
The Center for Strategic & Intl. Studies (CSIS) will examine Maternal Health in Ondo State, Nigeria on Wednesday January 16, 2013 in Washington, DC. State Governor Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, a physician and architect of the ABIYE (safe motherhood) model, together with Dinesh Nair (World Bank) Murtala Mai (Pathfinder International) and Jennifer G. Cooke CSIS Africa Program would lead the discussions at CSIS headquarters – 1800 K St. NW, Washington, DC 20006 at 3pm. The Abiye program of Ondo State is winning praise as a promising model creating incentives for expectant mothers to seek care and for health providers to deliver quality services. To attend RSVP Patrick Pratt at africa@csis.org.
Nigeria today remains one of the 10 most dangerous countries in the world for a woman to give birth, accounting for an estimated 14 percent of maternal deaths worldwide each year. But despite these bleak national statistics, there are signs of growing opportunity. In recent years, the federal government has devoted greater policy attention and resources to maternal health than previously and a handful of state governments are beginning to tackle the challenge in a strategic and comprehensive way.
ABIYE
The Abiye (safe motherhood) project, partly sponsored by The World Bank, was launched in October 2009 and piloted in Ifedore LGA with a mandate to develop sustainable equity-based healthcare services that will provide universal access to the people. The Abiye project was a bold paradigm shift from what obtained previously because it sought to bring qualitative and effective healthcare services to people where they live, work and play.
The initial goal was to reduce child and maternal mortality in Ifedore LGA by at least 50% and increase facility utilization by at least 60% by the end of the year 2011. With the success of the program, the goal has been reviewed to achieve the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 which mandates reducing child and maternal mortality in Ondo State by 67% and 75% by the year 2015, respectively.
DR. OLUSEGUN MIMIKO
Dr. Olusegun Mimiko is the 13th governor of Ondo state, not counting 4 administrators who served between 1993 and 1998. He assumed office on February 24, 2009 after contesting results of gubernatorial elections held on April 14, 2007 in which he allegedly lost to the incumbent Governor Olusegun Agagu. His is currently the first and only member of the Labour Party to win gubernatorial office in Nigeria. After serving for three and a half years he recently won reelection on October 20, 2012 and is serving his second term, making him the first Governor in Ondo State to legitimately win a second term election.
Before he became Governor, Dr Mimiko was the Federal Minister of Housing and Urban Development during the tenure of President Olusegun Obasanjo. In this Ministry, he coordinated the Obasanjo Administration’s Reform Program in the Housing and Urban Development sector. He was also a two-time Commissioner for Health in Ondo State and one time Secretary to the Ondo State Government – (2003-2005). In his state he is affectionately referred to as the architect of the ABIYE program which is an extremely important and internationally acclaimed “safe motherhood” program.
ABOUT ONDO STATE
Ondo State is in southwestern Nigeria. It was created on February 3, 1976 from the former Western State. Akure is the state capital and the 2006 census listed the state’s population at 3.4million. The state has eighteen Local Government Areas and majority of the state’s citizens live in urban areas. The predominant ethnic composition of the state is Yoruba. Ondo State has the largest number of public schools in Nigeria – over 880 primary schools and 190 secondary schools. Some of the state’s big government universities are the Federal University of Technology Akure, and the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba/Akoko.
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