Abia Records Nigeria’s Lowest Maternal, Infant Mortality Rates in Q1 2026
Abia Records Nigeria’s Lowest Maternal, Infant Mortality Rates in Q1 2026
Abia State has emerged as Nigeria’s best performer in maternal and child health, recording the lowest maternal and infant mortality rates in the first quarter of 2026.
The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, announced this on Monday, in Umuahia while briefing journalists on the outcome of this week’s State Executive Council Meeting presided over by Governor Alex Otti.
Prince Kanu said the feat was recorded during the First Quarter 2026 Performance Dialogue in the health sector, where states were assessed on key healthcare indicators.
“The 1st Quarter of 2026 covering Performance Dialogue in states, that’s in the health sector, Abia State ranked both the lowest maternal and infant mortality in the profiles of the states in the country.
“This is as a result of the huge investments in the health sector of the state”, the commissioner revealed.
He attributed the achievement to the state government’s sustained investments in renovating, retrofitting and equipping 200 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) under the first phase of Project Ekwueme.
According to Prince Kanu, 139 PHCs have so far been fully functionalised, including 77 World Bank-supported facilities, while 50 additional centres are currently being equipped.
The commissioner said 12 more PHCs would become operational within two weeks, bringing the total number of functional PHCs in the state to 151.
He also said that healthcare delivery has improved through the state’s Digital Health Link project, with 9,136 patients enrolled on the digital platform across nine hospitals within the last 10 months.
Prince Kanu further disclosed that enrolment under the Abia State Health Insurance Scheme had increased from 40,000 beneficiaries in December 2024 to 225,581 as of July 2026.
The commissioner revealed that the government is finalising work on the Obingwa General Hospital, which had undergone rehabilitation and expansion and is being equipped with modern digital health and telemedicine facilities ahead of its inauguration for public use.
He also announced that Abia was leading a joint initiative involving Anambra, Delta and Akwa Ibom states to digitise immunisation records and improve vaccination tracking for children.
Prince Kanu advised Abia residents to observe proper food hygiene and safety practices to prevent food poisoning, which he said, is the focus of the Ministry of Health’s weekly public health advisory.
He added that the state has not recorded any disease of public health concern, including confirmed cases of COVID-19, Mpox, Lassa fever, Ebola, yellow fever, cholera or rabies.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Enoch Uche, who provided further insight,said the quarterly performance assessment was coordinated by the Federal Ministry of Health using data collected directly from health facilities nationwide.
Prof Uche said Abia recorded only one maternal death in the first quarter of 2026, the same figure reported in the last quarter of 2025, which reflects sustained improvements in maternal healthcare.
The Health commissioner added that neonatal mortality declined from nine cases in the fourth quarter of 2025 to seven in the first quarter of 2026.
According to him; “The improved performance validates the state government’s sustained investments in strengthening primary healthcare, which addresses about 80 per cent of the population’s healthcare needs”.
Prof Uche Uche said Abia, alongside Delta, Akwa Ibom and Anambra states, was championing the development of a digital immunisation registry that assigns every child a unique vaccination tracking number.
He explained that the system would enable healthcare providers and schools to access a child’s vaccination history anywhere in the country and identify children requiring additional immunisation.
The commissioner said the initiative also integrates geospatial mapping to identify communities with low immunisation coverage for targeted interventions.
He added that the project is being implemented in collaboration with the Gates Foundation and expressed confidence that the success of the initiative could encourage its replication in Nigeria as a national model for immunisation management.
Prof Uche urged residents to maintain proper food hygiene and water safety practices to prevent food-borne illnesses, noting that “prevention remains the most effective public health strategy.
