A non-governmental organisation aimed at cutting maternal mortality and improving reproductive health care, Maternal and Reproductive Health (MRH) Collective, has called on government, stakeholders, and institutions to intensify efforts in implementing formal maternal care among pregnant women and girls.
MRHC made this call at its Iyaloju initiative dissemination meeting on Monday, held at Sojourner by Genesis Hotel, Oba Akinjobi Way, Ikeja, Lagos.
The meeting was held to analyse the progress of the Iyaloju project, an initiative aimed at improving the use of primary health care for maternal services in Nigeria, where pregnant women lack access to skilled care.
The hall was full às government officials and community stakeholders, and civil society organisations strategising on the way forward.
Those who directed the event were Ðr. Olajumoke Oke, Mrs. Funmi Owosho, Dr. Chiamaka Uwalakà, and Ms Fehintoluwa Aluko.
Also àt the event were Mr. Uçhe Azubuike, Ms Damilolà Busari, Mr. Sodiq Owolabi, ànd Ms Mariàm Oladejo.
Mrs. Funmi Owosho moderated the panel session. Other panelists were Dr Iwayemi, Baale Àmusu Sunday, Mrs. Otiwa Christiana, Dr. Otakpor Uzoyieçĥine, Felix Omomobi Oluwole, Dr. Àsiyànbi, ànd Mrs Sanni Afolabi.
With a power-point presentation, the initiative focused on improving the utilsation of skilled health maternal services (primary health care facilities) among vulnerable women and low-income urban women in Lagos State using strategies such as Emergency Obstetric Care training for Doctors and Nurses, Respectful Maternity Care Training for healthcare workers from all cadre, Data audit trainings for Health Information Managers, Community outreaches in communities and participatory forums. This project was implemented across 18 LGAs in Lagos State except for Alimosho and Ikorodu LGAs.
The programme seeks to ensure more women receive the quality care they need during pregnancy and childbirth.
Executive Director of MRHC, Dr. Olajumoke Oke, said that the forum was held to analyse findings, get feedback and insights from stakeholders of the Iyaloju initiative since it began.
She said that the forum was an avenue “to discuss and come up with recommendations that will significantly impact maternal health outcomes positively in the state.”
Oke said, “As policy makers, leaders and community influencers, your feedback is invaluable. So we are not just here to share our data, we are also here for your feedback, your insights, so that together, we can create a lasting impact on the state. We couldn’t have done any of what we have achieved in these three years alone.
“That is why we call together all the stakeholders that have helped us to make it happen, from the Ministry of Health and Primary Health Care board who helped us and guided us from the inception, from the design phase down to the implementation stages and the end line, and the primary health care board especially, which played a crucial role in coordinating our activities within the health care facilities.
“We can’t go on without mentioning also the community influencers who are the stakeholders that helped us to step down and explain our activities to the women that we serve and our media partners present today. We thank you once again, because without you, we might not be able to spread the word to the ends of the nation.”
During the meeting, MRHC discussed its research findings from when it began the Iyaloju Project, comparing baseline and endline data of facility and community evaluation. According to the organisation, a cross-sectional study was carried out among women aged 15 to 49 in 10 local governments in Lagos State based on the population size and low incomes.
MRHC revealed, “We used mixed methodology for our result findings, a cross-sectional study among women of reproductive age who have had at least one child or are currently pregnant at the time of data collection. The sampling procedure was a multi-stage one where we selected 10 LGAs based on those that had high population size and low-income communities, and within those LGAs, we identified purposes. We selected households by simple random sampling, then we recruited and interviewed respondents who consented to participate in the research study.
“For the data collection procedure, the study population focused on women of reproductive age between the ages of 15 to 49 years. The data collection period for baseline was between the 12th of June and to 7th of August. 2023, and the endline was from the 3rd of March to the 9th of May 2025. The instrument used was a structured questionnaire where we asked questions on social demographic characteristics of the respondent, their reproductive history, and care-seeking behaviour during the most recent pregnancy, the place of delivery, and satisfaction with care received at the facility where they delivered. The total number of respondents surveyed in the community for baseline was 3651, and for end line, it was 3509. For the facility survey, the total number of respondents was 927 for baseline, and 963 for end line.”
From its findings, it stated that there was an increase in the perception of respondents in seeking formal maternal care at health centres, with deliveries from traditional birth attendants declining from 30.1% in 2023 to 24.6% in 2025, while deliveries in public and private hospitals rose from 39.1% to 40.7% and 30.8% to 34.7% respectively.
The organisation cited affordability as the main issue causing women to make use of traditional birth attendants, and also revealed that some women had no form of health insurance.
MRHC stated that changing health worker behaviour and community norms was a long-term initiative, adding that there was a need to sustain social behavioural interventions, to enable the norms to be integrated into the community and be institutionalized.
“It’s very key for development, to invest in community engagement and health worker mentoring to ensure women feel comfortable with the formal health care system. Then there’s an urgent need to increase awareness around health insurance, especially for pregnant women and women in the communities generally. I think that the government should be able to lead this charge while we can support as much as we can.
“We also recommend a strengthening of the accountability systems at the facilities, largely to evaluate the quality of care. What kind of care is being given? How are health workers interfacing with clients? Things of that nature should be evaluated, and there should be some form of accountability in the system. And in that way, we’ll see, and we’ll begin to record even better, respectful maternity care in the facilities”.
Giving an overview of the project, Chief Operating Officer of MRHC, Mrs. Funmi Owosho, said that the organisation aimed to create the opportunity for every African woman and girl to access information, resources, and quality health care that she needed to live a healthy and prosperous life.
Owosho said, “Our work at MRHC is anchored on three strategic pillars. We have the research arm, the programmes, and the advocacy arm. For research, we conduct rigorous studies to uncover the root causes of maternal mortality in Nigeria and across Africa. This includes examining barriers to accessing healthcare and assessing healthcare delays in emergencies. These insights guide the design of impactful interventions. Our research portfolio covers evaluations and feasibility studies, health system mapping, implementation, and participatory research, as well as clinical trials.
“Currently, we have research projects being carried out across Nigeria, across Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, and Gombe. Our programmes are community-focused, and these community-based interventions are designed to reach and support the most vulnerable women. And we’re currently implementing three flagship initiatives. First is the Iyaloju initiative, which is why we’re here today. And one major objective of the Iyaloju initiative is to generate demand for maternal healthcare by engaging communities to shift norms and increase health-seeking behaviour.”
Advocacy and Stakeholder Engagement Manager of the MRHC, Dr Chiamaka Uwalaka, reiterated that the policy stakeholders meeting would “share insights from our intervention activities and research activities to policy makers, so that with the information we give to them, they can use it to also influence decision making.”
Uwalaka said, “We had this meeting in 2023 and in 2024 as well, and this is a policymakers meeting as well, but we brought up different other stakeholders to be part of it, because this is the closeout ceremony of the project”.
Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Health, Dr. Oluwakemi Ogunyemi, acknowledged everyone present at the event, stating that the organisation had achieved a lot through the Iyaloju initiative.
She stated that no individual organisation could achieve milestones alone, hence the need for stakeholders, community leaders, and civil society members to always work together.
Ogunyemi also emphasised the commitment of her office in promoting policies that prioritise the well-being of women and children in the community.
