Yebu: FCT community where pregnant women travel 11km for health services

Residents, especially pregnant women, at Yebu community in the Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have expressed frustration over their lack of access to healthcare, noting that they must travel over 11 kilometers to Kwali town to seek medical attention.

During a visit by Abuja Metro on Tuesday, the residents explained that the community’s primary healthcare center—built during the administration of the late council chairman, Samuel Gwamna—has fallen into a state of total disrepair.

They noted that both the facility and its equipment are in ruins, posing a significant challenge to patients.

Mr. Bulus Barnabas, a community member, told our reporter that for several years, residents including pregnant women have been forced to travel to the neighboring villages of Kwaku or Kwaita due to the center’s dilapidated state.

He added that emergency cases, particularly pregnant women in labour, face significant risks traveling to Kwali for antenatal care and delivery.

“The state of the health center has been one of the major challenges facing this community,” Barnabas said.

Another resident, Enoch Ishaku, noted that patients are often transported by motorcycle to Kwaita for treatment.

He called on council authorities to intervene and repair the facility.

Mr. Gabriel Baba Moses, the community’s village secretary, told our reporter that the facility’s condition has been a persistent problem for years.

He stated that the community has written to the council authorities on several occasions, but those efforts have yet to yield a positive response.

“About two weeks ago, the chief was alerted to a woman in labour who had to be rushed to a hospital in Kwali in the middle of the night. You can see the risk involved,” Moses said.

He further noted that since the community has two indigenous medical personnel who have manned the facility over the years, the council simply needs to rehabilitate the structure to allow residents to resume receiving treatment locally.

Reacting to the report, a senior official from the council’s Health Department, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the renovation of several rural health centers, including Yebu’s, has already been captured in the current budget.

“The health center in Yebu is among the rural facilities in Kwali scheduled for rehabilitation and the provision of new equipment in the council’s budget,” the   official said.

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