Governor Otti stresses importance Of Healthcare.

Abia state governor, Dr Alex Otti has thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his commitment to the healthcare sector which saw to the completion of the 100 beded Sustainable development Multi-purpose Hospital as well as the renaming of the SDG Mother and Child Hospital to a Multipurpose Hospital inorder to accommodate other members of the society.

Dr Alex Otti commissioned the 100 beded Sustainable development Multi-purpose Hospital, Obeaja in Ugwunagbo LGA built by the federal government under the Sustainable development Goals (SDGs) today,3rd July ,2024.

Speaking while performing the ceremony, governor Otti.said that Healthcare occupies a major position in our strategy as a government.

Governor Otti while emphasizing the importance of healthcare in his administrations strategic agenda, highlighted the 2001 Abuja Declaration, in which other African countries pledged to allocate at least 15% of their budgets to healthcare, pointing out that Abia State’s 2024 budget has met the target.

“In 2001, the heads of government’s in Africa under what is now known as Abuja declaration met in Abuja and gave a directive that all the countries of the African union should allocate no less than 15% of their budget to healthcare.

“The jury is still out as to how many of those countries that adopted that resolution that have complied. I’m happy to report that current 2024 budget of the Abia state government which we are half way in implementing, allocated 15% of the budget to healthcare.

The Governor noted that the goal of his administration for the health sector is in alignment with the Federal Governments Sustainable Development Goal 3, which aims to reduce maternal mortality to 70 per 1000 live births by 2030.

The Governor, however , expressed optimism about future improvements assuring that with his administrations deliberate focus on the healthcare sector, the state would witness a downturn in infant Maternal mortality rates.

“It is interesting to hear from Her Excellency (Princes Adefuliren) that our maternal mortality rate has reduced from a 1,047 that it used to be in 2020 to the 531 it was in 2022 and if i were to quote her, she says it has gone down to 136 presently that means we are doing well but we’re not there yet we still have a long way to go but we have moved.

“The numbers for Abia may not be very current but I’ve seen numbers like 171, as at 2021 but what is clear is that before this time, child or infant mortality actually increased from the numbers in 2016 & 2017 about 83 per 1000 to 2021 and the Numbers increased to 115 per 1000″.