Lagos | September 14, 2025 — Nigeria is grappling with a worsening maternal health crisis, as a chronic shortage of doctors continues to claim the lives of women during pregnancy and childbirth.
Health experts say thousands of maternal deaths recorded annually in the country could have been prevented if there were enough trained medical personnel, proper facilities, and timely interventions. Nigeria accounts for nearly 20 percent of global maternal deaths, according to the World Health Organization, with one in every 22 women facing the risk of dying during pregnancy or delivery.
The situation has been compounded by the exodus of healthcare professionals seeking better working conditions abroad, leaving overstretched hospitals with inadequate staff. In many rural areas, expectant mothers are forced to rely on traditional birth attendants or make long, risky journeys to access skilled care.
Doctors warn that insufficient manpower, coupled with dilapidated infrastructure and shortages of essential drugs, has created a cycle where preventable complications such as hemorrhage, hypertension, and sepsis often result in fatalities.
Analysts argue that without urgent reforms, Nigeria risks failing to meet global maternal health targets. They call for increased investments in healthcare, incentives to retain medical professionals, and improved community-level interventions to ensure no woman dies from childbirth complications that modern medicine can easily manage
