The Hina-Gana Foundation, a Humanitarian based NGO, has assisted over 100 indigent pregnant women and widows from six Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), with deliveey kits as part of efforts to help reduce maternal and child mortality in the country.

The Founder/President of the Foundation, Hajiya Hadiza Gana Mohammed, while distributing the kits to the beneficiaries at the second edition of “Birth a Child Programme” in Gwagwalada, said the gesture was her little way of assisting poor pregnant women and widows.

According to her, the “Birth a Child Programme” was conceived to prevent deaths of innocent babies during delivery, adding that some women cannot afford basic kits and sometimes endanger the babies and themselves.

“Women work very hard to make the children grow with good upbringing, some women cannot spend for themselves but can go extra miles to give their children.

“We noticed that most of this women doesn’t have the basic necessities to give birth to a child so this is a show of love to the innocent child.

“Permit me to say, the world needs strong women, women who will lift and build others, women who will love and be loved, women who live bravely both tender and fierce.

“Each time a woman stands up for herself, she stands up for all women and a woman is the full circle, within her, is the power to create, nurture and transform.

“We take care of street children and try to ensure they are enrolled into school to get some education but during one of my outreaches, I witnessed a pregnant woman who died in my presence while trying to birth a child.

“During the delivery there was nothing like hand gloves or pads not a single delivery kit and it was from that day I decided that I was going to involve pregnant women because no woman deserves to die while giving birth,” she said.

However, she called on the Federal Government to adequatly appropriate health financing on maternity wards to help reduce maternal and child mortality in the country.

In his remarks, Alhaji Yakubu Ibrahim, a royal father commended the Foundation and called on well meaning to have Humanitarian attitude to help make the country a better place.

A beneficiary, Mrs Christiana Ehemeje, while commending the foundation, said most pregnant women in rural areas can’t afford delivery kits and end up giving birth at home, adding that the items will go a long way to reduce delivery cost for her and other pregnant women. (NAN)