A new collaboration between two foundations will help up to half a million women in Nigeria get access to appropriate health guidance.
The Maternal Health Multiplier initiative, by the MTN Group Foundation and the Gates Foundation, has a special focus on maternal health, seeking to equip 5 000 frontline health workers with the tools to detect complications from pregnancy and childbirth early and to enable 500 health facilities to deliver higher-quality maternal health care.
ITWeb Africa reports that the programme will provide tools such as AI-enabled, phone-based decision support for both frontline health workers and mothers; more affordable smartphones and mobile data; and better connectivity at healthcare facilities.
‘By strengthening access to timely information, care and follow-up services, the initiative aims to help more women receive quality maternal health care throughout pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period, particularly in underserved communities,’ the foundations said
The Gates Foundation said on its website that the four-year partnership will invest US$25 million between 2026 and 2030 to catalyse additional funding and support future expansion into other markets.
‘As artificial intelligence evolves, we can put trusted, locally relevant health insights directly into the hands of mothers and healthcare professionals, tailored to their unique needs and languages. Starting in Nigeria, our ambition is to demonstrate a scalable model for improving maternal and child health outcomes across Africa. The true value of innovation lies in its ability to improve lives and create better futures for generations to come,’ said MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita.
The programme builds on Nigeria’s ongoing reforms to improve maternal and child healthcare.
Read more: Nigerian newborns weigh less if their mothers use biomass fuel – a major health risk
The partnership draws on MTN’s connectivity infrastructure, digital inclusion capabilities, mobile financial services, device distribution networks and local market execution expertise while the Gates Foundation will leverage its experience in maternal, newborn and child health, digital health innovation, responsible AI and evidence-based scale-up.
