Ms Rosamond Azure, the District Director of the GHS in charge of Bongo, said this when a team of personnel from the United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF)  visited health facilities in the Bongo District, where the Mother Baby Friendly Health Initiative (MBFHI) project is being implemented.

She said the project had contributed to improving quality healthcare of new born babies and their mothers in the district.The project is being piloted in the Bolgatanga and Bawku Municipalities, and the Bongo and Kassena-Nankana West Districts, is encouraging early breastfeeding within 30minutes after birth, promoting exclusive breastfeeding and ensuring the well being of the lactating mothers and their babies.

It is aimed among other things, to strengthen the leadership and collaboration for maternal and new born health service, exclusive breastfeeding, birth certificate registration, as well as provide facility base- quality of care for both mother and baby.

Ms Azure said as part of the project, the district hospital had nine motor-king, tricycle ambulances which were donated by the Korean Government through the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to improve quality delivery of babies and ensure mothers’ wellbeing while UNICEF provided capacity building training for midwives.

That had enabled the midwives to skilfully deliver pregnant women and assist them to breastfeed their children within 30 minutes after birth, she added.Dr William Gudu, the Medical Superintendent of the Bongo District Hospital, explained that the New Born Unit created by UNICEF two years ago had helped save lives of babies especially those who weighed below the normal mass, adding “some babies weigh as low as 0.7 kilograms”.

He attributed the zero maternal mortality recorded in the district to effective team work and collaboration from major stakeholders and urged the health personnel to continue to work with the sense of professionalism.

The MBFHI project is a two year project being implemented by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and Integrated Youth Needs and Welfare (INTYON) with funding support from United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF), and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The visiting team, included Dr Stefan Peterson, the Associate Director, Health Programme Division of the United Nations Children’s Fund visited the Bongo District Hospital, the Namoo Health Centre and the Adaboya Outreach facility to assess the achievement of the project for the past year.