KWSG Commences 10-Day Intensive Training for 50 Frontline Healthcare Workers across 16 LGAs

In a bid to further reduce the maternal and neonatal mortality rate across the state, the Kwara State Government through the Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, with support from United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and other partners, has commenced a 10-Day intensive training for 50 frontline healthcare workers across the 16 Local Government Areas of the state. 

The Executive Secretary, Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Prof. Nusirat Elelu, stated this recently during the official opening ceremony of the 10-Day training, which commenced on Monday 26th May, 2025 and will end on Wednesday, 4th June, 2025, at Peace Hotel and Suites, Tanke, Ilorin. 

The Executive Secretary noted that the training will ensure that all participants improve their knowledge on emergency obstetrics and newborn care, which is a testament to the state government’s commitment to increase the indices of quality services to the citizens.

Prof. Elelu disclosed that this will be the second time that the Agency is building the capacity of frontline health workers on Basic Emergency Obstetrics and Newborn Care (BEmONC), stressing that the training has  yielded  positive outcomes, which is evident in the fact that it did not only doubled the number of deliveries in our Primary Health Care Centres but also reduced the number of mother and child mortality in the state. 

The Executive Secretary noted that, “Kwara State is the safest place that a child can be born in the country because we have reduced the number of thousand infant mortality in the state. This is not a surprise. It is a result of very clear hard work, consistency and deliberate efforts that you and I have put together in the state to ensure that this is the reality."

She appreciated the Governor, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for recently recruiting 105 frontline health workers as well as ensuring that we have at least one functional primary health care centre in each of our geo-political zones in the state, commending the Governor for his commitments to “the ongoing revolutionary infrastructure in our PHCs as well as the human capacity development through training, such as the BEmONC, to improve the health of the people, especially at the grassroots level.”

Prof. Elelu also appreciated the facilitators of the training for the quality training of health workers, while imploring the participants to take the training with all sense of responsibility to handle the mothers who accessed antenatal care in the state.

In his welcome address, the Director of Primary Health Care Systems, Dr. Michael Oguntoye, stated that the training is aimed at enabling the human resources available in the health system, to respond to the needs of the communities, adding that it is on this note that the government of Kwara State and partners, especially UNICEF, are prioritising Basic Emergency, Maternal and Newborn Care.

Dr. Oguntoye said that the training will ensure that health workers are repositioned to properly manage pregnant women, reduce mortality morbidity in Kwara State and remove the country from the list of countries that are contributing to the poor indices documented all over the globe.

He encouraged the participants to be attentive, to ask questions, reiterating that the best way to learn is by asking questions.

The Lead Facilitator of the training from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynae, University of Ilorin, Prof. Hadijat Raji, said that the training would ensure that the knowledge of health care workers on emergency obstetrics and newborn care is improved, while the skills of health care workers on identification and management of life-threatening conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum and newborn care would also be improved.

Prof. Raji stated that “despite notable improvements in maternal and child health over the years, Nigeria still faces an unacceptably high rate of maternal and neonatal mortality. Most of these deaths are preventable and occurred due to delays in recognizing danger signs, reaching care and receiving adequate and timely interventions. It is within this context that this training becomes not only timely but also essential. It will go a long way to contribute to reducing maternal and neonatal mortality across Kwara State and Nigeria at large.

She commended the Agency, technical partners and all stakeholders whose efforts have made the training possible, saying the support demonstrates a shared commitment to improving maternal and newborn health outcomes in our state and urged the participants to apply the knowledge gained as well as become advocates and mentors to others in their facilities.

Alade Opeyemi,

Press Secretary,

KWSPHCDA.

08038133813