Medical experts and other stakeholders have called for urgent action to address Nigeria’s high burden of preterm births, insisting that keeping premature babies alive should no longer be the ultimate goal of healthcare interventions.
The experts said attention must now shift beyond survival to ensuring that babies born too soon receive the care and long-term support needed to thrive.
They spoke at the 2026 Preterm Summit organised by the Early Births Awareness and Support Foundation (EBAS) in Port Harcourt, with the theme, “Strengthening Preterm Survival in Nigeria: From Access to Outcomes.”
Delivering the keynote address, a paediatric neurologist, Prof. Angela Frank Briggs, described preterm birth as a “silent emergency” and called for urgent strengthening of maternal and newborn healthcare systems.
She said preterm birth had implications beyond neonatal care, affecting mothers, families, the healthcare system, the economy and Nigeria’s human capital development.
“Every year, many babies are born too soon. The World Health Organization estimates that about 13.4 million babies were born preterm globally, unfortunately, one in every 10 live births.
“Preterm birth complications remain the leading cause of death among children under five,” Briggs said.
She added that many of the deaths could be prevented through already known and cost-effective interventions.
“Behind every statistic is a mother. Behind every statistic is a father. Behind every statistic is a family waiting anxiously beside an incubator, and behind every statistic is a child whose future should not be estimated by the circumstances of his or her birth,” she said.
Briggs stressed that access to a healthcare facility alone was not enough, noting that the quality of care received by mothers and babies upon arrival could determine their chances of survival and long-term wellbeing.
She said facilities handling childbirth should have skilled birth attendants, functional newborn resuscitation services, reliable oxygen supply, effective infection-control systems, appropriate feeding support and access to kangaroo mother care.
The paediatric neurologist also stressed the need for efficient referral systems to enable premature babies to be transferred promptly from facilities lacking adequate capacity to centres equipped to provide specialised neonatal care.
She illustrated the importance of effective referral with the story of a 700-gram premature baby born in Rivers State who was transferred to a better-equipped facility outside the state.
According to her, the availability of a transport incubator and a standby referral system made it possible for the baby to receive the specialised care needed for survival.
“Today, the boy is in the university,” she said, recalling fears that the child might suffer developmental complications, including cerebral palsy.
Briggs also warned that the discharge of a premature baby from a neonatal intensive care unit should not mark the end of care, as many children born preterm may require continued medical, developmental and family support.
She called for stronger interventions to prevent preterm births through improved preconception care, family planning, adolescent reproductive health education, antenatal care and maternal nutrition.
The professor also advocated the prevention and treatment of infections, hypertension, preeclampsia, diabetes and maternal anaemia, while urging healthcare providers to identify high-risk pregnancies early and ensure timely referral and quality obstetric care.
According to her, Nigeria’s major challenge was not necessarily the absence of policies but inadequate implementation.
“The challenge is not as if we do not have some of these policies in place. But the challenge we have in our country is implementation. So, we must move from policy being on paper to being in practice,” Briggs said.
“We must strengthen the entire continuum from the womb to the community, to primary healthcare centres, secondary facilities, tertiary neonatal units and follow-up. The premature baby does not exist in isolation from the mother.”
She also referenced the Nigerian Child Survival Action Plan 2025–2029, saying it emphasises a continuum of care from households and communities to primary and higher-level health facilities.
Earlier, founder of EBAS, Mrs. Tari Agiobu, said Nigeria’s preterm birth burden required urgent and sustained intervention.
She said about 774,000 babies were born preterm in Nigeria in 2020, according to WHO and UNICEF estimates, representing approximately one in every 10 births.
Agiobu said Nigeria’s estimated preterm birth rate remained at about 9.9 per cent between 2010 and 2020.
She challenged stakeholders to move beyond statistics and examine whether premature babies were receiving the appropriate care quickly enough.
“Today, I don’t want us to simply ask: How many babies are born too soon? I want us to ask: What happens to them when they arrive? Do they get the care they need? Do they get it early enough? Does where a baby is born determine how much of a chance that baby has?” she said.
According to Agiobu, preterm birth is not only a medical issue but also a family, health-system, policy and human development challenge.
She disclosed that she lost a set of twins born prematurely about 10 years ago, saying the experience had strengthened her resolve to advocate better care and support for premature babies and their families.
“I stand before you today not only as the convener of this summit, but as a mother who lost a set of twins born preterm about 10 years ago. I know the fear of waiting. I know the hope of praying. And I know what it means to leave the hospital without your children,” she said.
Agiobu urged stakeholders to confront existing gaps in Nigeria’s preterm care system and develop practical solutions to improve outcomes for mothers and babies.
“Let us ask not only how we can help more babies survive, but how we can create the conditions for them to thrive. Because survival should not be the end of the conversation. It should be the beginning,” she said.
A participant, Rebi Alexander, described the summit as impactful, saying she gained valuable knowledge about kangaroo mother care, which she said had helped her family.
She called for greater awareness of preterm care across communities, particularly in areas where mothers and families lacked access to essential information.
Alexander also called attention to the psychological needs of women during and after childbirth, urging greater involvement of clinical psychologists and psychiatrists in the wider maternal healthcare support system.
The summit ended with two panel sessions during which medical professionals responded to questions and discussed practical solutions to challenges affecting preterm survival, maternal care and the long-term wellbeing of babies born prematurely.
