Bauchi State Government has taken a significant step towards improving pregnancy outcomes with the receipt of 134,280 bottles of Multiple Micronutrient Supplement (MMS).
This life-saving initiative, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and implemented by UNICEF, aims to combat anaemia in pregnancy.
The MMS scale-up, launched in collaboration with the Government of Nigeria and the Bauchi State Government, seeks to strengthen ante-natal platforms and deliver high-impact maternal nutrition interventions.
According to UNICEF Nutrition Specialist Philomena Irene, the initiative will also enhance the capacity of health workers to effectively administer MMS to pregnant women.
The receipt of MMS is crucial, as only 23% of pregnant women in Bauchi State currently receive iron and folic acid supplementation, essential for reducing the risk of low birth weight, maternal anaemia, and iron deficiency.
The scale-up aligns with the Nigerian government’s plan to reduce anaemia among pregnant women to 40% by 2025 and contributes to the SDG 2030 goal of reducing anaemia by 50% by 2030.
According to her, “NDHIS 2018 shows that only 23 per cent of the 381,364 pregnant women in Bauchi state receives iron and folic acid supplementation, which is crucial in reducing the risk of low birth weight, maternal anaemia, and iron deficiency.”
She explained, “Under this scale-up, Bauchi state has received 134,280 bottles of MMS. More will be supplied as the project implementation progresses.”
Philomena Irene added, “This initiative will also strengthen the capacity of health workers to effectively forecast and update MMS administration to pregnant women in Bauchi state on the Logistics Health Management Information system (LHIMS) and DHIS 2 platforms.”
The Nutrition Specialist added, “The scale-up of MMS for pregnant women aligns with the Nigerian government’s plan to reduce anaemia among pregnant women to 40 per cent by 2025.”
She further stated, “It also feeds into the SDG 2030 goal of reducing anaemia among pregnant women by 50 per cent by 2030.”
According to her, “For this innovation to be sustained, UNICEF will work with the Bauchi State Government to ensure MMS is included in the annual state procurement Plan and that funds are released through the Child Nutrition Fund for the procurement of MMS.”
“On its part, UNICEF will continue to support the Bauchi state government to mitigate the effects of anaemia in pregnancy and scale up MMS to all pregnant women,” She assured.
