WILBERFORCE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES (WJSS)
ISSN: 2504 – 9232
Volume 11, No. 1, March, 2026
Pages 68-81
DOI: 10.36108/wjss/6202.11.0160
THE AWA PEOPLE OF IJEBU, OGUN STATE CHALLENGES AFFECTING ACCESS TO MODERN MATERNAL AND NEONATAL HEALTHCARE IN THE ABIA CENTRAL SENATORIAL ZONE
Goodluck I. Nwaogwugwu
Department of Sociology, Coal City University, Enugu, Nigeria
and
- J. Okereke
Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Ebonyi State University
Abstract
This study explored determinants of maternal and neonatal healthcare access in the Abia Central Senatorial Zone, Nigeria through the prism of Andersen Behavioral Model and Social Determinants of Health and under the concept of healthcare infrastructure, emergency transport, and socioeconomic determinants. There was a mixed-methods approach involving 618 surveyed women, focus group discussions, and intensive interviews. The results showed that only a quarter of respondents (29.1%) had proper healthcare infrastructure and means of transporting to an emergency, and a half (42.4%) had access to quality maternal and neonatal healthcare. The Chi-square revealed that there were significant associations between infrastructure (χ2 = 52.87, p = 0.001) and education level (χ2= 12.46, p = 0.001) and service use. Logistic regression provided an indication of the likelihoods of women receiving care in communities with sufficient infrastructure (3.8 times) and women with higher education levels (1.9 times). The study highlights the importance of enhancing infrastructure, emergency transportation and education of women to enhance results.
Keywords: Abia, access, healthcare, maternal, neonatal