Katsina State

Katsina State was established on Wednesday, September 23, 1987, following the division of the defunct Kaduna State. It shares its borders with Kaduna State to the South, Jigawa and Kano states to the East, Zamfara State to the West, and the Niger Republic to the North. Covering an area of approximately 23,938 square kilometers, Katsina is located between Latitude 11°07’49″N – 13°22’57”N and Longitude 6°52’03″E – 9°90’02’E. As of 2019, it had an estimated population of 9.2 million, with 70% residing in rural areas.

The state comprises 34 Local Government Areas (LGAs), 361 political wards, and seven health zones. In terms of traditional leadership, Katsina State is organized into two emirates: Katsina and Daura. The population is predominantly Hausa/Fulani, with Islam as the primary religion.

The State Ministry of Health (SMoH) holds the state’s health policy and regulatory functions. Additionally, there are seven significant parastatals, including the State Primary Health Care Agency (SPHCA) for primary health care services, the Hospital Services Management Board (HSMB) overseeing General Hospitals, and the Katsina State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency (KTSCHMA), providing health insurance coverage for residents in both the formal and informal sectors. Other entities include the Drugs and Medical Supplies Agency (DMSA), State Action Committee on AIDS (SACA), College of Nursing and Midwifery Katsina, and College of Health Sciences Katsina.

Important health indices related to the state are Neonatal Mortality Rate 55/1,000 live births; IMR 114/1,000 live births; U5MR 269/1,000 live births; MMR 1,000/100,000 live births; Total Fertility Rate of 7. The fully immunized child (FIC) is below 5% from the 2006 NICS, and vaccine preventable diseases remain major causes of childhood morbidity and mortality. The state has one of the highest MMR in the country and efforts are directed at addressing this problem. It has 1,427 health facilities, 21 general hospitals and 22 CHC. ANC attendance is about 55% but delivery in HF by skilled attendants is about 10%. There are 480 midwives and 981 nurses in the state with one each in some LGAs. The main occupation of the people of the state is farming and cattle rearing.( STATE STRATEGIC HEALTH DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2010 – 2015).

With over 1900 public health facilities, the state has two tertiary hospitals and 1879 primary health facilities, including 34 Comprehensive Health Facilities. Regrettably, only 10 of these facilities serve as Quality of Care (QoC) learning sites, and the state lacks supportive partners for QoC, leading to a deficiency in training, implementation, and other QoC-related activities.