Seven organisations pledge $65m to reduce maternal, newborn deaths in Nigeria

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Seven private sector and philanthropic organisations have proposed commitments worth more than $65 million to strengthen maternal and newborn healthcare services in Nigeria.

The commitments, announced on Wednesday during the 2026 Joint Annual Review of the health sector in Abuja, are expected to support interventions in 172 local government areas (LGAs) identified as having a high burden of maternal deaths.

According to a statement issued following the event, the organisations submitted letters of intent under the Maternal and Neonatal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative (MAMII) Private Sector Compact, a government-led framework designed to coordinate investments and technical support for maternal and newborn healthcare.

The seven organisations are DP World, Bayer, UNICEF, dsm-firmenich, Nestlé Nutrition Institute, Roche and Ferring Pharmaceuticals.

The proposed contributions include financial resources, medical products, technical expertise, supply chain support and other services intended to address gaps in maternal and newborn healthcare delivery.

The announcement comes as Nigeria continues to record high numbers of preventable maternal and newborn deaths.

According to estimates contained in the statement, approximately 40,000 women and 300,000 newborns die annually in Nigeria, representing more than 100 maternal deaths and 800 newborn deaths every day.

These estimates highlight persistent challenges in access to skilled birth attendants, emergency obstetric services, essential medicines and timely referrals, particularly in underserved communities.

MAMII, launched in November 2024, prioritises 172 LGAs across 33 states, which account for more than half of Nigeria’s maternal deaths, according to the programme’s targeting analysis.

The initiative focuses on improving emergency obstetric and newborn care, strengthening referral systems, providing emergency transport and increasing access to essential medical supplies and trained health workers.

Speaking at the event, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare Muhammad Pate said reducing preventable maternal and newborn deaths remained a national priority.

“Through the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative and our Sector-Wide Approach, we are bringing federal and state governments, the private sector and development partners together around a common national plan, with particular attention to the 172 local government areas where the burden of maternal mortality is greatest,” Mr Pate said.

He described the commitments as an important step towards improving healthcare delivery and an important expression of confidence in Nigeria’s reform agenda.

“Our responsibility is to ensure that every commitment is aligned with national priorities, every investment is accounted for, and every intervention contributes to measurable improvements in the lives of Nigerian women and children,” he said.

The Nigeria Country Director of the Gates Foundation, Uche Amaonwu, said the partnership would help coordinate resources and expertise towards reducing preventable deaths.

Mr Amaonwu said the burden of maternal mortality continues to affect too many Nigerian families.

“The MAMII compact brings focus to this challenge, coordinating public, private and philanthropic efforts to reduce preventable maternal and newborn deaths,” he said.

He said the foundation was working with partners, including MSD for Mothers, MTN Group Foundation and the World Economic Forum’s Global Alliance for Women’s Health, to strengthen maternal and newborn healthcare.

Similarly, MTN Foundation Executive Director Odunayo Sanya said the organisation would support the initiative through connectivity, artificial intelligence and digital solutions.

“MTN believes technology has its greatest value when it removes real barriers to essential services,” she said.

Ms Sanya said the partnership would help provide women, frontline health workers and healthcare facilities with information and digital tools to improve maternal health outcomes.

The Head of the Centre for Health and Healthcare at the World Economic Forum, Shyam Bishen, said private sector participation could contribute more than financial support.

Mr Bishen said businesses could provide products, technology, supply chains and expertise needed to improve healthcare delivery, particularly in underserved communities.

The Executive Director of Social Impact and Sustainability at MSD for Mothers, Jacquelyn Caglia, said the organisation would invest in the Training for Emergency Action, Management and Workflows in Midwifery, Obstetrics and Neonatal Care (TEAM OB/NEO).

The programme is designed to equip health workers with the skills needed to manage life-threatening complications during pregnancy, childbirth and newborn care, including severe bleeding, infections and breathing difficulties in babies.

Ms Caglia said the company had spent 15 years supporting efforts to reduce maternal deaths, including in Nigeria, through its MSD for Mothers initiative.

“By investing in TEAM OB/NEO as part of the MAMII Compact, we reaffirm our commitment to Nigeria and to collaborating with other private sector partners to pool resources, expertise and innovation aligned to the national effort to expand access to quality maternity care services for women across Nigeria,” she said.

The government also unveiled a digital platform designed to coordinate and monitor contributions under the MAMII Private Sector Compact.

The platform, developed through the SWAp Coordination Office, is expected to show the geographical distribution of interventions, partner contributions and outstanding healthcare gaps across participating states and LGAs.

It is also intended to help prevent the concentration of donor-funded projects in some locations while other communities remain underserved.

However, the platform is still at the prototype stage, with its operational and reporting arrangements yet to be finalised.

The MAMII National Lead at the SWAp Coordination Office, Dayo Adeyanju, said the platform would support better coordination and investment decisions.

“It shows clearly where the gaps are and which delivery partners are supporting which LGAs,” Mr Adeyanju said.

He added that the platform would help prevent the duplication of interventions and improve resource allocation, with information expected to support partner decisions from December 2026.

The government said the next phase of the Compact would involve agreeing on implementation milestones, deploying resources to priority areas and monitoring progress against maternal and newborn health outcomes.

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