The wife of Kwara State governor, Mrs. Olufolake AbdulRazaq, has presented cash and gifts to first babies of the year across the three senatorial districts in the state.
This is contained in a statement by the Press Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs, Hamdalat Saad, yesterday in Ilorin.
Represented by Hajia Maryam Ahmed, the Commissioner for Women Affairs, she urged mothers in the country to take care of their babies.
Mrs. AbdulRazaq also advised mothers to always ensure healthy growth and development of their babies through immunisation, exclusive breastfeeding and provision of proper nutrition.
She said the event was meant to create awareness on the importance of healthy living for mothers and newborn babies.
Congratulating the families of the new born babies, Mrs. AbdulRazaq expressed gladness that the beginning of the new year recorded the birth of new born babies.
She prayed that God would continually bless the parents to cater for their needs.
“I wish to congratulate the hospital management, parents of the first babies as well as other babies born nationwide.
“It is an annual routine exercise to make this presentation to the mother of first, second and third children delivered at the beginning of each year.
“May God Almighty bless the babies, the mothers and provide sufficiently for the families,” she said.
She enjoined mothers to embrace ante-natal care, hospital deliveries and post-natal care.
The wife of the governor said the programmes were aimed at addressing the challenges of maternal and child mortality, maintaining basic sanitation and hygiene, birth spacing, child registration at birth and the need to enrol children in schools at the appropriate age.
The first baby of the year, a male, was delivered at the General Hospital, Patigi, Patigi Local Government, at 6 am on January 1.
The second baby, a female, was delivered at 8:05am, and the third baby, a male, was born at 9:30 a.m, at the same general hospital on the same day.
The governor’s wife and her team also visited Amoyo Health Care Centre in lfelodun Local Government, Kwara South, where three children were delivered, and also Adewole Cottage Hospital, llorin, where four babies were given birth to.