By Yunusa Isa, Gombe
In a concerted effort to reverse alarming trends in maternal and newborn mortality, stakeholders across Gombe State and beyond have gathered to launch the “EMBRACE” Project – a five-year initiative dedicated to Enhancing Maternal and Baby Resilience through Access, Care, and Equity.
The project, supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies in partnership with the Gombe State Government, the Africa Centre of Excellence for Population Health and Policy (ACEPHAP), and TA Connect, held a two-day co-creation workshop this week to map out evidence-informed interventions.
Addressing the critical nature of the initiative, the Permanent Secretary of the Gombe State Ministry of Health, Engineer Yanbiyu Idris Buba, described the project as timely.
Buba said “We appreciate our partners for joining hands with the Gombe State Government to address the maternal and neonatal mortality rates in our state”, urging all participants to contribute meaningfully to the workshop’s objectives.
According to Professor Hadiza Shehu Galadanci, who provided an overview of the project, Gombe State currently faces a maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity rate of approximately 902 per 100,000 births.
“Delivery and pregnancy is not a disease; it is a happy moment for the family. We want to ensure that every single delivery is safe, and every single baby is delivered safely so it can survive and thrive,” she emphasized.
Professor Galadanci noted that the project aims to tackle systemic gaps, including human resource shortages, inadequate infrastructure, equipment deficits, and challenges in data management and referral systems.
Dr. Ummi Habiba Mahmud, the EMBRACE Project State Team Lead, highlighted the complex web of factors contributing to these deaths, ranging from poverty and lack of balanced nutrition to the risks associated with home deliveries performed by untrained birth attendants.
“We aim to ensure timely accessibility for all pregnant women to health facilities to receive services from professionally trained health workers,” Dr. Mahmud stated.
She challenged participants to personalize the crisis, adding, “The project needs the full intervention of all stakeholders at all levels to identify the issues at hand and how to address them.”
The Executive Secretary of the Gombe State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Abdulrahman Shu’aibu, highlighted recent state-led efforts to bolster the workforce, including the recruitment of 440 primary healthcare providers and the expansion of the state’s College of Nursing capacity from 100 to 600 students.
Dr. Shu’aibu noted that “Gombe State has provided the enabling environment for all stakeholders and partners to operate. We will actively participate from the planning stage to owning the project and scaling it up.”
Dr. Kolawole Olatunbosun, a consultant for the project’s landscape assessment, stressed the necessity of a proactive referral and emergency transportation system, particularly in rural areas.
Echoing these concerns, Dr. Garba Muhammad, Chairman of the Technical Working Group for Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH), noted that the project is a vital step toward identifying root causes.
“Parents must inform healthcare workers the moment a mother is pregnant to ensure proper supervision and care,” he added.
Representing the Medical Director Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe, Dr. Halima Usman Faruk pointed to medical complications like preeclampsia, eclampsia, and hypertension as primary drivers of mortality, while also highlighting the impact of the professional “brain drain” on the quality of available care.
As the workshop concluded, Dr. Layi Jaeola, Technical Director at TA Connect, emphasized the long-term vision of the project.
He said “By bringing all stakeholders into the project, you are helping them to own and sustain the program. We want to see this scaled up beyond the initial three local government areas – Dukku, Yamaltu-Deba, and Balanga to achieve lasting impact across the entire state.”
With a five-year horizon and a multi-stakeholder approach, the EMBRACE project aims to align with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets, turning the tide on preventable deaths and ensuring safer births for the women of Gombe.