By Ankeli Emmanuel, Sokoto
Sokoto State governor’s wife, Hajiya Fatima Aliyu Ahmed has encouraged women to embrace child spacing, adding it has numerous benefits.
Hajiya Fatima who spoke on the commemoration of safe Motherhood day, International day to End Obstetric Fistula and International day of Midwives and Child Health Week 2025, said, “child spacing is very important for both the mother and her children, because when you are not healthy you cannot give birth to healthy children”.
Continuing, the governor’s wife also hinted that, the present economic reality is also another cogent reason why people should also embrace child spacing.
Represented by Barrister Saadatu Muhammad Yunusa, the governor’s wife affirmed that,
the four significant events speaks to the health, dignity, and future of their people.
“Safe Motherhood Day, International Day to End Obstetric Fistula, International Day of the Midwives and Child Health Week 2025. Each of these commemorations serves as a powerful reminder of our collective responsibility to protect, uplift, and invest in the well-being of mothers and children—the very foundation of our communities.
“This year’s themes resound with urgency and purpose; Safe Motherhood Day 2025 calls for “Equity in Maternal Healthcare: Leaving No Mother Behind.
International Day to End Obstetric Fistula reminds us that “Her Health, Her Right: Shaping a Future Without Fistula.
International Day of the Midwives honors the vital contribution of midwives under the theme “Midwives: Critical in Every Crisis and the Child Health Week 2025 emphasizes that “Every Child Deserves a Healthy Future: Invest in Your Child.”
While insisting that all hands must be on deck to ensure that in unison, they build a society where no woman dies giving life, no girl suffers the pain and shame of fistula, and no child is denied a healthy start in life, Hajiya Fatima added that, “We will continue to celebrate the strength and resilience of the women of Sokoto State—our mothers, sisters, and daughters—who continue to nurture families and uplift communities against all odds”.
Giving count down of some of the governor’s achivements in the health sector, Hajiya Fatima however appreciated development partners saying, “These successes would not have been possible without the steadfast support of our development partners. We are deeply thankful for their continued technical assistance, funding, and advocacy which have strengthened our health systems and reached the most vulnerable among us.
“Their collaboration has enabled us to scale up maternal healthcare, deliver fistula repair services, and extend lifesaving immunizations and nutrition to hard-to-reach communities”.
Earlier in an interview, the Chief Medical Director of Maryam Abacha Women and Children Hospital, also known as VVF Center, Hajiya Hadiza Tore had divulged that no fewer than over five hundred Obstetric fistula patients have been treated in Sokoto with the year.
Hajiya Tore who also highlighted the role of education, advocacy and awareness creation in ending cases of fistula.
The Women and Children Hospital Chief Medical Director, Hajiya Tore while appreciating the contributions of development partners, said, the TCI, Challenge Initiative and Development Communication Networks (DEVCOM) are doing great job in the areas of entrenching family planning in the state.
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