Slum and Rural Health Initiative

About the initiative

Transforming Maternal and Neonatal Health in Nigeria through Hygiene and Vaccination Advocacy

BetaMama Pikin is a transformative initiative committed to reducing maternal and neonatal mortality rates in Nigeria by advancing hygiene practices and promoting life-saving vaccinations during pregnancy, childbirth, and postnatal care. By combining community health education, distribution of essential hygiene materials, and advocacy for timely immunization, the project empowers pregnant women and nursing mothers with the knowledge and tools they need to protect themselves and their babies. Through partnerships with primary healthcare facilities and frontline workers, BetaMama Pikin ensures access to accurate information and encourages regular attendance at antenatal care and immunization sessions.

Project Features

Co-creation of hygiene advocacy materials

The BetaMama Pikin project uses a collaborative approach to develop maternal and child health advocacy materials focused on hygiene and immunization. Through contributions from healthcare workers, community members, and project teams, user-friendly flashcard-based training tools and educative songs were co-created to support health education during ANC and immunization sessions. These materials simplify key messages, promote interaction, reflect local culture, and make learning fun and memorable for pregnant and nursing mothers.

Refresher workshops for primary healthcare workers

The BetaMama Pikin project conducts refresher workshops for primary healthcare workers in Oyo, Abia, Ebonyi, Gombe, and Katsina States. These sessions focus on hygiene and immunization education, using interactive flashcard activities to build the capacity of health workers to better support pregnant and nursing mothers during antenatal and immunization visits.

Sensitization Campaigns for Pregnant Women and Nursing Mothers

An organized effort to raise awareness, educate, and engage pregnant women and nursing mothers on essential hygiene practices and the importance of immunization. These campaigns are delivered during antenatal and immunization sessions at primary health centers, using flashcard-based activities and interactive educative songs to make learning fun, practical, and easy to remember. The mothers actively sing these songs during sessions, creating an engaging environment that reinforces key messages through rhythm and repetition.

Media Campaign

Leverages traditional media (radio, television) and social media platforms to reach a wider audience of pregnant women and nursing mothers with key messages on hygiene and immunization. The campaign promotes healthy behaviors through relatable content, jingles, expert interviews, and interactive segments. Educative songs developed during the project are also played on radio to reinforce learning in a fun and memorable way, encouraging consistent care during pregnancy and postpartum.

Empowering pregnant and nursing mothers with hygiene kits

Involves distributing birth and postnatal care kits to pregnant and nursing mothers who have been sensitized on proper hygiene and immunization practices. These kits serve as both practical support and a reinforcement of the health education they receive during ANC and immunization sessions, promoting safer delivery and newborn care.

Equipping primary health care centers with hygiene kits

Involves providing primary healthcare centers with comprehensive hygiene kits to support clean and safe maternal and newborn care. These kits enable community and frontline health workers to model good hygiene practices during ANC and immunization sessions, reinforcing the education provided to pregnant and nursing mothers.

Take action

Join us in saving lives and shaping healthier futures for mothers and babies in Nigeria!