By Health and Science Africa
The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Sight and Life, and the development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC) convened stakeholders in Abuja to launch the research findings on Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (MMS) landscaping and segmentation in Nigeria.
The research was commissioned by Sight and Life, with support from the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), and conducted by dRPC.
Research findings presented by the Lead Researcher, Dr Stanley Ukpai, showed that Nigeria’s planned scale-up of Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (MMS) for pregnant women is being constrained by three immediate challenges: fragmented financing, affordability barriers for women, and supply levels that remain far below national need. He said the research findings show that policy ambition alone will not deliver impact unless financing, access and supply constraints are addressed together.
He disclosed that the findings show that Nigeria records about 7.8 million pregnancies each year and continues to face a high burden of anaemia in pregnancy. While MMS offers broader nutrient support than iron and folic acid supplementation and is strongly accepted by women when available, affordable and properly explained, the study found that long-term scale-up will require stronger public financing, protection for low-income women, and a more reliable supply system.
According to him, financing for Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (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.
He said the research therefore recommends institutionalising MMS financing, protecting affordability through public support and fair pricing measures, and securing long-term supply through improved procurement and support for local manufacturing.
In her message, Anna Hakobyan, Executive Director of Nutrition at CIFF, said the findings provide valuable evidence and practical insights to support Nigeria’s efforts to integrate micronutrient supplementation as part of wider sustainable maternal and child nutrition strategies.
In her presentation at the event, Mrs Zainab Abubakar, Country Programme Manager for Sight and Life, said the purpose of the research was to support the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and partners to scale up maternal nutrition commodities such as MMS by generating evidence on how existing health financing systems can better support introduction and scale.
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. She said the assessment identified practical pathways for sustainable MMS financing, highlighted implementation bottlenecks, and produced recommendations to help policymakers and development partners align financing decisions with national health priorities and the goal of nationwide scale-up.
The Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr Salma Ibrahim Anas, said maternal nutrition is central to Nigeria’s health and development agenda because it directly affects the survival, health and future potential of both mothers and children. She said the evidence supporting MMS is already strong, and that the priority now is not whether MMS works, but how to scale it effectively and equitably.
Earlier, Mrs Adegbite Olufunmilola, Director of Nutrition in Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said the Federal Government has taken deliberate steps to institutionalise MMS within the health system, including its integration into relevant national guidance on maternal nutrition and antenatal care. She said Nigeria’s broader health reform efforts, including ongoing health sector renewal initiatives, provide an opportunity to strengthen the policy, financing and implementation foundations needed for effective scale-up.
She added that sustainable financing options include public budgets, health insurance mechanisms, and other domestic financing pathways, while local manufacturing of MMS presents a major opportunity to strengthen national supply security and long-term sustainability.
She noted that the Federal Government has demonstrated high-level commitment to improving nutrition outcomes but said stronger implementation at national and subnational levels remains essential. She called for deeper collaboration among government, development partners and the private sector to ensure that proven maternal nutrition interventions such as MMS reach women at scale.
Highlights of the launch included panel discussions on the financing and policy landscape, demand equity and consumer behaviour, and the supply landscape and market structure, with participants identifying practical actions for federal and subnational governments to accelerate the adoption and scale-up of MMS for pregnant women across Nigeria.
