The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, on Wednesday in Abuja, commended international health development partners for their support in strengthening the nursing profession in Nigeria.

The commendation followed the support provided to the council and 13 nursing and midwifery training institutions to further transform nursing and midwifery education in the country.

The development partners include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the United Nations Population Fund, the World Health Organisation, and Health Information Systems Advisory.

Items provided include training equipment, documents, electronic applications, educational resources and an electronic accreditation management system.

Speaking at the official launch and handover of the items, the CEO of NMCN, Ndagi Alhassan, commended the partners for their sustained commitment.

Mr Alhassan said the items would enhance the quality of teaching and learning in nursing training institutions, support skills acquisition, and promote competency-based education.

Mr Alhassan added that through the partnerships, the council had benefitted from technical assistance, capacity building, curriculum strengthening, digital transformation initiatives and the provision of modern training tools aligned with international standards.

Health minister Ali Pate described the achievements recorded by NMCN through the partnerships as commendable.

Mr Pate said the launch of the items was not merely ceremonial but a renewed commitment to the health and well-being of Nigerians, particularly women, newborns and families.

Mr Pate noted that Nigeria continued to face one of the world’s most challenging maternal and newborn health burdens, with maternal mortality remaining unacceptably high.

He also expressed concern about retaining trained nurses and midwives, noting that migration abroad had worsened the country’s health workforce gap.

To address this, Mr Pate said he had approved the central placement of nurse interns to ease the challenges newly qualified nurses face in securing internship placements.

According to him, the launch of midwifery items, electronic applications, and training materials reflects collaboration, a shared vision, and aligned purpose among stakeholders.

The development partners reaffirmed their commitment to supporting the Nigerian government to strengthen the health sector.

(NAN)