A newborn was abandoned by her mother, a student, after delivery at Apalara Medical Hospital in Kwara State on Thursday. The baby was delivered at the hospital and later handed over to the Kwara State Ministry of Women Affairs on Friday by a police officer, Medinat Garuba, and the hospital's Chief Medical Director, Giwa Luqman. The commissioner for Women Affairs, Opeyemi Oluwakemi, confirmed the incident and stated that the state government would provide full medical and physical care for the infant. She emphasized that every child counts in Kwara State and commended those who brought the baby to the ministry.
Giwa Luqman disclosed that the mother had initially sought to terminate the pregnancy but was counselled to carry it to term. After delivery, she abandoned the newborn. Oluwakemi noted that the Child Rights Law allows for abandoned children to be reintegrated into society through fostering or adoption. She stressed that due process must be followed and time given for mothers to reconsider their decisions.
The case of the student who abandoned her newborn after being counselled against abortion reveals the emotional and social pressures young mothers face, even when they comply with medical advice. Giwa Luqman's role in persuading her to continue the pregnancy, followed by her decision to abandon the child, suggests that counselling alone is not enough without post-delivery support. For Nigerian students in similar situations, this underscores the urgent need for confidential maternal care and reintegration programmes that protect both mother and child. Without such systems, more infants may end up in state care despite interventions.
