The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has donated medical equipment and drugs worth $290,462 to the Yobe State government to curb the outbreak of diseases and improve maternal, neonatal and child survival.
The state has recently been in the grip of a meningitis outbreak, with the death of at least 22 students in three boarding schools.
The UNICEF Health Manager in Maiduguri, Dr Clement Adams, who presented the equipment and drugs to the Commissioner for Health in Damaturu, said the gesture was to improve maternal, neonatal and child survival.
He said the equipment, valued at $290,462, was provided to complement the efforts of the state government in improving health services, adding that with this intervention, pregnant women in Yobe State could access primary healthcare services close to their homes.
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He added that UNICEF is committed to providing drugs and equipment that will protect children and women from malaria, cholera, diarrhoea and other deadly childhood diseases.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Muhammad Lawan Gana, said the equipment and drugs would help in reducing the challenges in the Yobe health system and also bring some relief to the people.