TheCable

Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, has announced that female civil servants in the state will get six months for maternity leave.

Speaking after being sworn for a second term on Wednesday, the governor explained that the initiative is to ensure that children were adequately cared for, well-fed and receive all the nutrients they would need within the first six months of their lives.

He also announced free medical care for children below five years in public hospitals in the state.

“In education and health, we have shown a commitment with investments to expand the access of ordinary people to these public goods,” el-Rufai said.

“Our commitment to universal health coverage will continue. Therefore, we shall accelerate the implementation of contributory health insurance scheme as a priority of this administration.

“Just yesterday, our state executive council approved six months maternity leave for female public servants. This is to encourage the health development of infants.

“Mothers in our state are also reminded that children up to age five gets free medical care in our hospitals. They are entitled to free regular medical checkups in all public hospitals. Please, take advantage of this.”

The governor also announced that his government has made free and compulsory education available for girls in the state.

“We took bold steps to improve the teaching standards. We have made basic education truly free in Kaduna state and we have made education free and compulsory for our girls up to the end of senior secondary school,” he said.

“We’ll continue to fix existing schools and build new classrooms where necessary and support our teachers to deliver decent public education.”