By BONIFACE AKARAH

A civil society group, the Maternal Accountability Mechanism in Kaduna Initiative (KADMAM), has raised concern over what it described as the extremely low release of funds from Nigeria’s 2026 health sector allocation, warning of grave consequences for maternal and child health.

In a statement, Garba Muhammad, Co-Chair of KADMAM, said only N36 million had been released out of the N218 billion allocated to the health sector — representing about 0.016 per cent of the total budget.

“This severe underfunding has grave implications for maternal and child health in Nigeria,” Muhammad said.

He noted that dilapidated hospitals, poorly equipped maternity wards, shortages of essential medicines, and abandoned primary healthcare projects continue to put pregnant women and children at risk.

“Nigeria already bears one of the highest burdens of maternal and under-five mortality globally, and inadequate budget implementation only worsens these preventable deaths,” he stated.

The group stressed that access to quality family planning services remains critical to reducing maternal mortality and improving child survival outcomes.

“When women lack access to modern contraceptives, birth spacing services, and reproductive health education, the risks of unsafe pregnancies, complications, and maternal deaths increase,” Muhammad said.

He added that strengthening and fully funding family planning programmes had been proven to reduce maternal deaths, improve child survival rates, and promote healthier families.

KADMAM therefore called on the Federal Government to urgently release and transparently utilise health sector funds, prioritising primary healthcare, emergency obstetric care, skilled birth attendance, and comprehensive family planning services.

“Adequate and accountable health financing is essential to saving mothers and children and securing Nigeria’s future,” the statement said.