UNFPA Reaffirms Commitment to the Advancement of Frontline Midwifery Care, Access and Safeguard to Newborns. By Raymond Enoch
UNFPA Reaffirms Commitment to the Advancement of Frontline Midwifery Care, Access and Safeguard to Newborns.
By Raymond Enoch
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to strengthening frontline midwifery care in Nigeria, describing nurses and midwives as the backbone of the country’s journey toward universal health coverage and reduced maternal and newborn deaths.
This assurance was given by the UNFPA Nigeria Resident Representative, Ms Muriel Mafico, during the official launch of newly developed and updated training documents, the Electronic Accreditation Management System (eAMS), and the handover of educational resources to the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) at its headquarters in FCT Abuja.
Addressing a distinguished gathering that included the representeatives of senior officials from the Federal Ministry of Health, the Registrar/CEO of NMCN, the Country Director of the Gates Foundation Nigeria, and other key stakeholders in the health sector, Ms Mafico described the occasion as a landmark moment for Nigeria’s health workforce development.
“It is my great pleasure to join you all today at the official launch of these critical documents and systems that will shape the future of nursing and midwifery practice in Nigeria,” she said.
Ms Mafico emphasized that UNFPA, as the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, remains focused on three transformative goals: ending unmet needs for family planning, ending preventable maternal deaths, and ending gender-based violence and harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and child, early and forced marriage.
She underscored the central role of midwives in achieving these goals, noting that global evidence consistently shows that investments in quality midwifery care yield enormous returns for both society and the economy.
According to her, well-trained, regulated, motivated, and supported midwives are capable of delivering up to 90 percent of essential sexual, reproductive, maternal, newborn, and adolescent health services.
“Achieving universal coverage of care provided by midwives can avert almost two-thirds of maternal and newborn deaths and stillbirths,” Ms Mafico stated, adding that every one dollar invested in midwife-provided care delivers an estimated sixteen dollars in social and economic returns.
Against the backdrop of Nigeria’s continued high contribution to global maternal mortality, Ms Mafico acknowledged the Federal Government’s renewed drive through initiatives such as the National Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII), the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp), and the Maternal and Neonatal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative (MAMII). However, she warned that these efforts must be matched with urgent action to address the country’s severe midwifery workforce gap.
Nigeria, she disclosed, requires about 70,000 additional midwives to meet World Health Organization standards by 2030—a challenge further worsened by the steady emigration of skilled health workers, particularly those with midwifery competencies.
It was in response to this challenge, she explained, that UNFPA has continued to deepen its partnership with the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, supporting the government across both pre-service education and in-service training.
On pre-service education, UNFPA has supported curriculum development aligned with international standards, embedding competencies in emergency care, sexual and reproductive health, and gender-based violence response. The agency has also strengthened training institutions through provision of equipment, upgraded library resources, establishment of skills laboratories, and training of tutors and preceptors.
Special attention, Ms Mafico noted, has been given to humanitarian settings. In Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states, UNFPA has integrated the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) and psychosocial first aid into pre-service training for midwives to ensure readiness in crisis situations.
She further highlighted innovative approaches such as community midwifery and targeted recruitment, designed to train candidates from rural and underserved communities in states like Adamawa, Sokoto, and Kwara, with the aim of improving retention and access to skilled care in hard-to-reach areas.
Central to the event was the launch of the Electronic Accreditation Management System, which Ms Mafico described as a game changer for regulation and quality assurance in nursing and midwifery education.
“Digitalisation in health is a key strategy for efficiency,” she said, explaining that the eAMS transitions the Council’s accreditation process from a cumbersome paper-based system to a centralized, cloud-based digital platform that enhances transparency, speed, and accountability.
Beyond pre-service training, UNFPA’s support also extends to in-service training and continuous professional development. This includes capacity building in family planning, emergency obstetric care, post-abortion care, adolescent sexual and reproductive health, and gender-based violence response, alongside structured mentorship and supervision.
Innovative learning solutions such as mobile and remote training platforms, including ongoing collaboration on the Safe Delivery App with the Maternity Foundation, are also being deployed to ensure that midwives continue to upgrade their skills wherever they are.
Ms Mafico stressed the importance of youth-friendly services, noting that UNFPA supports the training of health providers—including doctors and frontline staff—to deliver confidential, non-judgmental care to adolescents.
“Supporting nurses and midwives is critical for the achievement of universal health coverage,” she said, reaffirming UNFPA’s vision of a Nigeria where every woman, regardless of location or socioeconomic status, can access quality care to safeguard her health and that of her newborn.
She commended the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria for what she described as a significant milestone achieved under his leadership, and praised the Honourable Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare for ongoing efforts to ensure equitable, timely access to essential healthcare services nationwide.
The event marked not only the unveiling of new tools and systems but also a renewed call to action—placing midwives and nurses at the center of Nigeria’s health transformation agenda, with digital innovation and sustained investment as the driving forces for saving lives.
