President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to improving maternal health with the launch of the Presidential Women’s Health Transformation Initiative; Renew Health Equity and Reform (RenewHER), which will prioritise scalable, evidence-based interventions that strengthen health systems, expand access to quality maternal services, and unlock private-sector and donor financing to accelerate impact.
Speaking at the unveiling, delivered on his behalf by Vice-President, Kashim Shettima, the president said a nation’s character is measured by how it cares for its women. “There is no greater test of a nation’s character than the care it extends to its women,” the presidency quoted him as saying.
“She stressed that maternal health is the heartbeat of every family, the compass of social stability, and the truest index of national welfare,” Shettima told guests, adding that the administration will embed women’s health priorities across federal, state and local levels.
He described RenewHER as the national engine for coordinating stakeholders in a collective drive for better maternal outcomes.
RenewHER will establish a presidential focal office on women’s health to work closely with the Federal Ministry of Health and the State-Wide Approach Coordination Office (SWAp).
The initiative will also partner with the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and the Governors’ Spouses Forum to mobilise grassroots action and ensure women’s priorities inform policy and programmes.
At the heart of RenewHER is an AI-powered National Women’s Health Digital Hub designed to deliver geo-targeted campaigns on maternal survival, adolescent health, preventive care, workforce strengthening, and community coalitions.
The initiative will reinforce existing programmes, including the Maternal and Neonatal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative (MAMII), while expanding opportunities that link health with economic empowerment.
“This is why we designated a focal person in the presidency, to ensure women’s health priorities are embedded in every state, every local government and every community,” the president added in the remarks read out by the vice-president.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Women’s Health (OSSAP-WH), Adanna Steinacker, described RenewHER as “a bold, data-driven, tech-enabled and financially intelligent strategy” to transform women’s health nationwide. “RenewHER is more than an initiative, it is a national call to action to redefine the future of women’s health and economic equity in Nigeria,” she said, announcing the launch of the Women’s Health Nigeria Hub and a companion magazine to amplify policy and community voices.
Key strategic partners supporting RenewHER include the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), the Nigerian Governors’ Spouses Forum (NGSF), MAMII, the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), and the Women in Healthcare Network (WIHCN).
The programme plans to deliver measurable health outcomes while creating economic opportunities for women through digital wallets, microgrants, skills training and support for women-led health innovations.
