Recent findings from the United Nations put Nigeria at the top of a list that no country wants to head. Nigeria is now the most dangerous country in the world in which to give birth.  According to UN estimates compiled from 2023 figures, one in 100 women in Nigeria dies in labor or in the days immediately following giving birth. 

“In Africa we have a proverb,” says Vision Africa COO Sarafina Nwokenta, “that a woman who is pregnant has one foot in life and one foot in her grave. It means that we are not sure that she will complete the nine-month journey. And, if she does that the child may not survive.”

In 2023, Nigeria accounted for over one fourth—29 percent—of all maternal deaths worldwide. That works out to an estimated 75,000 Nigerian women a year dying in childbirth—one every seven minutes. That’s a sobering statistic and one that VA hopes to affect through the Agnes Onuoha Memorial Hospital. 

Maternal health along with pre- and post-natal infant care will be a major focus at AOMH, which Vision Africa hopes to open next year.  The 50-bed hospital will be a secondary-care facility, which means that it will offer a full array of services for patients, whether women, men or children. 

AOMH hopes to break down some of the barriers to healthcare in rural Nigeria, including a shortage of facilities, costly treatments that most can’t afford, lack of skilled medical personnel, basic equipment, and supplies, and little or no access to transportation. To overcome these hurdles, AOMH will have an on-site medical residence so that trained personnel are available around the clock. The hospital is within walking distance of a large rural population numbering in the tens of thousands, but it also has a fully-oufitted ambulance for patient transport. And, best of all, every patient who comes through the doors is treated without charge. 

“At AOMH, we are not giving just peripheral care,” Nwokenta said. “As a secondary care facility, we will be able to provide everything from simple family planning to fibroid surgery, if it’s needed. And it’s all free to a population with no current access to medical care that is less than two hours away. That’s why we are so excited to open our doors to those who need care so desperately.”

AOMH is nearing completion, but we are not at the finish line yet. The final touches of interior work are ongoing as well as completion of the medical residence. Initial supplies have been received from Project C.U.R.E. but more are needed as well as some key pieces of equipment. 

To help raise these critical funds, all proceeds from the Vision Africa fall luncheon will benefit AOMH. An invitation to the luncheon is below, and you should receive a personal invitation in your inbox tomorrow. We hope that many of you will attend in person, but if you are not in the Dallas area, you can still support AOMH, either on the luncheon donation page or on our primary donation page at visionafrica.org. Just designate your gift for “AOMH” in the comments section.

Is God calling you to help us open those doors? Every delay means more lives lost to preventable deaths. More babies without mothers. More husbands without wives. Just seven minutes from now. Partner with us today and be a lifesaver.