The Federal Government's planned scale-up of Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (MMS) for pregnant women faces severe bottlenecks due to fragmented financing, affordability barriers, and an inadequate national supply chain, according to a new research study.
Research Findings
The study, jointly launched by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Sight and Life, and the Development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC) in Abuja, was supported by the Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF). It reveals that despite high policy ambition to curb maternal anaemia, structural deficits could stall implementation nationwide.
Dr. Stanley Ukpai, dRPC Director of Programmes, disclosed that Nigeria records approximately 7.8 million pregnancies annually, with many expectant mothers battling chronic anaemia. While pregnant women highly accept MMS over traditional iron and folic acid supplements, the transition remains hampered by economic realities.
“The research findings show that policy ambition alone will not deliver impact unless financing, access, and supply constraints are addressed together,” Dr. Ukpai said. “Financing for MMS is still inconsistent and heavily donor dependent. Women are willing to use MMS but many cannot afford it consistently, and current supply remains significantly below the level required for nationwide coverage.”
Recommendations
The report recommends institutionalising public financing, implementing fair pricing measures to protect low-income women, and transitioning toward local manufacturing to secure supply lines.
Zainab Abubakar, Country Programme Manager for Sight and Life, explained that the research was commissioned to map out how existing health financing architectures can absorb the scale-up cost without overburdening the populace. She noted that “limited funding, weak insurance inclusion, and heavy dependence on out-of-pocket spending continue to create barriers to equitable access to maternal nutrition services in Nigeria.”
Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr. Salma Ibrahim-Anas, emphasised that maternal nutrition remains central to the administration’s human capital development agenda. “The evidence supporting MMS is already strong. The priority now is not whether MMS works, but how to scale it effectively and equitably,” she said.
Earlier, the Director of Nutrition at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Adegbite Olufunmilola, stated that the government had integrated MMS into the revised national guidelines for antenatal care. She argued that the ongoing health sector renewal investment serves as a gateway to introduce local manufacturing, which would guarantee long-term product availability.
Executive Director of Nutrition at CIFF, Anna Hakobyan, added that the data provides “valuable evidence and practical insights to support Nigeria’s efforts to integrate micronutrient supplementation as part of wider sustainable maternal and child nutrition strategies.”
