ATBU VC Decries High Rate Of Child Mortality

The vice chancellor of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi, Prof. Ibrahim Hassan Garba, has expressed deep concern over the continued high rate of preventable deaths among children under the age of five, despite progress made in recent years.

Prof. Garba expressed his concerns at the opening of a training workshop organised for journalists by the Bauchi State Child Mortality and Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) initiative.

He said child mortality remains one of the most pressing public health challenges in Nigeria and in many parts of the world.

He explained that the CHAMPS initiative is committed to identifying the causes of child deaths through rigorous data collection and surveillance, with the ultimate goal of informing effective health interventions and policymaking.

The vice chancellor emphasised the pivotal role of journalists in addressing public health challenges. He said the workshop was aimed at equipping media professionals with the knowledge, tools, and ethical frameworks needed to accurately and sensitively report on child mortality and prevention efforts.

“The importance of this workshop cannot be overstated. Your ability to communicate complex health information, raise awareness, and hold stakeholders accountable is invaluable,” he added.

Professor Garba outlined the key objectives of the training, which include to equip journalists with accurate information on Maternal Child Health (MCH) issues and CHAMPS programmes, enhance media capacity for evidence-based reporting on maternal and child health, foster collaboration between media, health professionals, and policymakers, advocate for policy changes and increased public awareness on MCH and promote data-driven storytelling to influence public perception and decision-making.

He stressed the critical need to disseminate CHAMPS findings widely, noting that the data generated is not merely for academic purposes but serves as a powerful tool for change.

“For these insights to have real-world impact, they must reach all key stakeholders: policymakers, community and religious leaders, and the general public,” he said.

According to him, wide dissemination ensures that policymakers can use evidence-based information to allocate resources effectively, community and religious leaders understand prevention methods and can advocate for healthier practices and the public gains awareness of risks and available health services, empowering caregivers to make informed decisions.

He described the workshop as both “Xapt and timely,” emphasising its goal of enhancing journalistic capacity in health communication, especially on maternal and child health issues.

“By improving your skills in accurate reporting, ethical storytelling, and data interpretation, we are empowering you to be change agents, champions who amplify the voices of vulnerable children and families and advocate for a healthier future,” he said.

He also urged  journalists to approach the training with curiosity, dedication, and a commitment to excellence. “Your stories can save lives. Through accurate reporting and dedicated advocacy, we can significantly reduce child mortality in Bauchi and beyond,” Prof. Garba concluded.

The provost of the College of Medical Sciences at ATBU, Prof. Sambo Bello Zailani, represented by Professor Sani Malami, emphasised the importance of prioritising the health of women and children.

He described maternal wellbeing as inseparable from national development and lamented the alarming rate of child deaths under the age of five. However, he expressed optimism that the CHAMPS project, in collaboration with the media, would help reduce the negative impacts.

Also speaking, Dr. Bashir Muhammad Faruk, principal investigator of the CHAMPS project in Bauchi, highlighted that the state has the highest rate of infant and child mortality in the country.

He said CHAMPS is doing everything medically possible to reverse this trend, and that the workshop was organised to strengthen media capacity in reporting on family health and child mortality.