By Henry Obetta

A Non-governmental organisation, Maternal and Reproductive Health Research, MRHR, Collective, yesterday, expressed dismay over rising maternal mortality rate across the country, saying financial barriers, socio-cultural beliefs and the activities of unlicensed birth attendants are to blame.

MRHR Collective, which expressed sadness over the situation at the 2025 Iyaloju Participatory Forum held in Lagos, said persistent maternal deaths could be reduced if communities, health providers and government worked together.

The NGO, however, said it was scaling up interventions, strengthening partnerships and expanding communication platforms to reach more women across Nigeria, with the goal of reducing maternal deaths and improving reproductive health outcomes.

Speaking at the event, Advocacy and Stakeholder Engagement Manager of the MRHR, Dr Chiamaka Uwalaka, said the Iyaloju Project was designed to tackle maternal mortality on all sides.

Uwalaka said: “ Nigeria has one of the highest maternal mortality statistics. So in order to address the challenges with maternal mortality in Nigeria, this project was initiated, and this project seeks to address maternal mortality from both the demand and supply perspective.”

“On the demand side, we look at the mindset of community members who use maternal health services. On the supply side, we work with healthcare providers and facilities to improve the quality of care delivered.”

“So iyanoju addresses these challenges by interacting with both the healthcare workers from supply side and then the community members that utilize this care from demand side. This forum is one of the initiates, one of the activities on the project. This is the third year of the pro of the forum, or the third edition of the forum. We’ve had it twice in the lifespan of the project. This is the third and last edition of the project.”

“This forum brought together government stakeholders, facility stakeholders, committee stakeholders. We want to find a way to strengthen the relationship between them in order to improve the trust that community members have towards the use of healthcare, strengthen their trust in the services that is provided at the health centers, as well as provide them with information that they need to be able to make healthy choices concerning their health”
“Also to find ways to address the challenges with the quality of care that is being received at the health care facilities, as well as increase their use of this primary health facility. That’s why we brought together people from these various sectors.”

Also speaking, Programme Officer at MRHR Collective, Mrs Funmi Owoso, said: “In 2023 alone, about 8,000 pregnant women were registered and 80 per cent delivered at government health centres. 99.5 per cent of them were delivered safely. It is improper for women to die because they cannot afford less than N28,000 for quality care.”

According to her, Mama Base also arranges emergency transportation, referral services and nutrition counselling during pregnancy.

Established in 2007 by Professor Bosede Afolabi, the MRHR Collective has grown from a Lagos-based NGO into a nationwide platform promoting reproductive health and safe motherhood.

Currently, its programmes cover 12 local councils including Mushin, Oshodi-Isolo, Itire-Ikate, Iba and Somolu.