FG pledges commitment to charter on maternal rights

 

The Federal Government has pledged to adopt and institutionalise the Respectful Maternity Care charter as a strategy for promoting the reproductive rights of women in Nigeria, which among others include their rights to quality maternity health services.

A statement issued on Friday by the Communication Officer of White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood Nigeria, Oyokunyi Jon Ita, said the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, stated this in a memorandum of information presented to the National Council of Health during its 56th Council meeting in Lagos.

The Minister was also quoted to have requested that the council approve the adoption of the charter and support its implementation across all levels of care in the Federal, State and Local Governments accordingly.

“Also, he requested further that this measure be adopted to strengthen approved quality assurance and improvement systems in all health facilities at the three tiers of Government.”, the statement said.

While emphasising the need for the adoption of the charter, Chukwu in his memo to the council reiterated that the Federal Government and partners should aim at raising the awareness on the fundamental rights of women while receiving care in any health facility to stem the rising abuse as well as regain the trust of women to use health facilities that could provide skilled attendance during labour and delivery at the post partum period.

In his speech, the National Cordinator of  WRAFSMIN, Mr. Tonte Ibraye, commended the minister and pointed out that the adoption of the charter would help the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration to achieve the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 by 2015.