Govt to pay mothers for antenatal care, immunisation from subsidy funds

THE Federal Government has taken measures to encourage mothers to embrace ante-natal care (ANC) to curb maternal and infant mortalities and other problems associated with inadequate or absence of medical attention during pregnancy.
Central to government’s intervention in this regard is giving of cash rewards to mothers for attending ANC clinics, giving birth in a Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) under the supervision of skilled birth attendants/midwives and for bringing forward their children for routine immunisation.
This new scheme is to be executed with funds from Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) on maternal and child health.
The government has also approved fresh engagement and immediate deployment of 3,426 health workers to rural PHC facilities nationwide and planned to launch an initiative to save one million lives by 2015.
The gesture, according to the Minister of State for Health, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, and the Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Ado Muhammad, is in fulfilment of government’s assurance to Nigerians on judicious spending of proceeds accruing from partial removal of fuel subsidy.

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