The Kano State Government has officially commenced the 2026 Integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW) and Birth Registration Campaign, with a call on parents and caregivers to utilise the free healthcare services being offered across the state.
The week-long campaign was flagged off at the Pharma Grade Warehouse, Drugs and Medical Consumables Supply Agency in Kano.
Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, represented by the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Abubakar Labaran Yusuf, said the exercise would be conducted in all 44 Local Government Areas to improve access to essential health and nutrition services for women and children.
The commissioner stated that the campaign will provide routine immunisation, vitamin A supplementation, multiple micronutrient supplements (MMS) for pregnant women, nutrition screening for children and birth registration services.
“The week-long activity will take place in all the 44 local government areas of Kano State and will provide immunisation services, vitamin A supplementation, multiple micronutrient supplements, and nutrition screening as well as birth registration,” Dr Yusuf said.
He urged parents and caregivers to ensure their children and eligible pregnant women benefit from the intervention, describing the campaign as an important step towards reducing preventable illnesses and improving maternal and child health outcomes.
Dr Yusuf also acknowledged the support of development partners, including Nutrition International, UNICEF and the World Health Organisation (WHO), saying their collaboration would contribute significantly to the success of the exercise.
Speaking at the ceremony, the UNICEF Chief of Field Office, Kano, Shafeeq Ur-Rehman, described the campaign as a renewed commitment to safeguarding the health, nutrition and survival of women and children while ensuring every child obtains a legal identity through birth registration.
“Today marks more than the launch of a campaign. It represents a renewed commitment to ensuring that every pregnant woman, every newborn and every child has access to essential health and nutrition services while also ensuring that every child is recognised, protected and counted through birth registration,” he said.
Ur-Rehman noted that the campaign would deliver several high-impact interventions simultaneously, including vitamin A supplementation, deworming, immunisation, malnutrition screening and maternal nutrition services.
He explained that birth registration had been integrated into the campaign to make it easier for families to obtain legal documentation for their children.
“A birth certificate is more than a document; it is a gateway to education, healthcare, social protection and legal rights,” he said.
According to UNICEF, the campaign targets about 2.7 million children aged six to 59 months for vitamin A supplementation and 97,129 pregnant women for multiple micronutrient supplements.
The organisation said the services would be delivered through 1,324 health facilities located across the state’s 484 wards in all 44 local government areas, with birth registration available at campaign sites.
Ur-Rehman commended the Kano State government for allocating ₦200 million for the procurement of multiple micronutrient supplements, describing the investment as a demonstration of the state’s commitment to improving maternal and child nutrition.
He also acknowledged the contributions of Nutrition International, the governments of Canada, the United States and the Netherlands, as well as the Gates Foundation, for supporting the implementation of the campaign.
UNICEF further appealed to parents to take advantage of the free services while encouraging traditional and religious leaders to continue mobilising communities and addressing misconceptions that may discourage participation.
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The organisation reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Kano State in strengthening healthcare delivery, improving nutrition, expanding immunisation coverage and promoting universal birth registration, particularly among underserved communities.
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