By Ndidi Chukwu
The United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has declared Kaduna State the best performing state in the reduction of mother-child transmission of HIV. This declaration was contained in a letter addressed to the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, by the UNAIDS Country Director, Dr. Bilali Camara, at the end of the first phase of the 2015 Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCH).
According to a statement by the spokesman to the Governor, Samuel Aruwan, Kaduna State won the prize, following a week long counselling and testing of 84,000 pregnant women for HIV across government hospitals in the state. The statement also mentioned the effort of the state in the reduction of mother-child transmission of HIV, which necessitated the recognition of the achievement by the agency which also pledged the sum of $14,000 to support Kaduna State in the next phase of the MNCH.
The state’s healthcare system also got a boost as MTN Foundation selected five state hospitals to benefit from its Maternity Ward Support Project (MWSP). The benefiting hospitals are; Yusuf Dantsoho Hospital, Kaduna, General Hospital, Kafanchan, Jubrin Maigari Hospital, Birnin-Gwari, Hajiya Gambo Sawaba Hospital, Zaria and the Dabo Lere Memorial Hospital, Saminaka.
A letter from the MTN Foundation to the state Governor also said that the five hospitals were selected after rigorous inspection and verification of the expression of interest submitted by the state. With the selection of five hospitals, the maternal wards of each of the hospitals will get 20 adjustable hospital beds, 20 bedside cupboards, 10 foldable ward screens, 20 hydraulic over-bed tables, 20 visitor chairs, two neonatal incubators, 20 baby cots, 10 drip stands, 20 mattresses and 40 pillows. In addition, all the maternal wards will be renovated, with the provision of toilets and a nurse’s Centre.
