UK aid to combat poor health in Nigeria
19 November 2008
Millions
of people in Nigeria will be given free healthcare for the first time and
provided with the means to protect themselves against HIV, International
Development Minister Ivan Lewis announced today.
Two UK-funded schemes will deliver a wide-range of measures aimed at
significantly improving life-expectancy across the country, especially for women
and children.
One million children die before the age of 5 in Nigeria, whilst the number of
mothers who die during pregnancy is one of the highest in the world.
Yet medical experts say the lives of almost 700,000 children could be saved
every year through free healthcare, such as immunisation and
basic health advice during infant years.
Announcing the new measures, Ivan Lewis said:
"Nigeria needs immediate and sustained help if it is to tackle the shocking
quality of healthcare in some parts of the country.
"With 3 million people living with HIV, and 1 in 5 children dying before their
fifth birthday, I share the sense of urgency among health professionals and want
to underline DFID’s determination and commitment in tackling this head on.
"Our two new programmes will provide positive, sustainable change in helping
ensure millions of ordinary men, women and children get the healthcare they
deserve."
Fighting HIV and AIDS
The
new six-year HIV/AIDS project will reach 27 million young people with its safer
sex message and provide 1.2 billion condoms to slash the number of new
infections by 50,000 every year.
Nigeria has the second highest number of people living with HIV in the world.
Over 3 million people are HIV positive and 1 million children have been orphaned
by the disease.
In recent years the country has slowly started to win the war against HIV, but
experts warn much more needs to be done. The Nigerian national average of HIV
prevalence has gone from 5.8% in 2001, to 4.4% in 2005, to the latest figure of
3.6%.
The £100 million "Enhancing Nigeria’s Response to HIV and AIDS" programme aims
to:
- Target the most vulnerable groups in society - including women and children – and reduce discrimination towards those living with HIV
- Support the use of accurate and reliable information to help set up new programmes, and use existing ones more effectively
- Encourage a change in behaviour in the population, including the use of condoms as the most effective means of prevention.
During his visit, Ivan Lewis visited the vibrant community of Mpape, 20
minutes from the centre of the capital Abuja.
HIV is seen to be a growing problem in Mpape because of the transient nature of
life there, with the majority of people working in construction or transport.
On his arrival, the Minister was warmly welcomed by community elders, who expressed their
appreciation of a programme run by DFID to help fight HIV and AIDS.
Speaking to members of the 30,000-strong community, including local teenagers, about their lives, he heard how DFID has helped them through its programme, which encourages safe sex and staying faithful.
Improving healthcare
The focus of the second scheme is on developing Nigeria's failing health
system. The new £148 million initiative will install experts across Nigeria’s
health service to help identify the services people most need and where money
should be spent.
Known as Partnerships for Transforming Health Systems 2 (PATHS2), the scheme
will help ensure:
- Better local health services across the country, including rural clinics to support pregnant mothers and provide immunisations to children
- More focus on preventative health support, not just treatment, to ensure people are better prepared to fight disease and illness
- More training of staff and new incentive packages to retain doctors and nurses in the poorest areas
- Faster and better managed flow of drugs across all states
- Better government planning and management, ensuring that money is spent where health needs are greatest.
The scheme is expected to boost the use of health facilities by 25%, reaching
30 million people across six states.
It will also provide £21 million worth of drugs and medical equipment to more
than 1,500 clinics and hospitals, with a focus on maternal and child health.
It is estimated that the number of births where skilled birth attendants are
present will rise from just a third to over a half, while full immunisation
rates will rise from 18% to 60%, slashing infant mortality.
Around 70% of Nigerians live on less than $2 a day but have to find the money to
pay for the most basic help. It is estimated that 60% of people pay for
healthcare whilst the poorest and most vulnerable are priced out of the most
basic support.
Links
- Millennium Development Goal 6: HIV/AIDS
- How we fight poverty: Killer diseases
- How we fight poverty: Maternal health
- Nigeria country profile
