By: Fatou Dahaba
Gambia’s Minister of Health, Dr Ahmed Lamin Samateh, has apologized to the National Assembly after an error in retrieving data from the DHIS2 health information platform led to the presentation of an incorrect national maternal mortality ratio (MMR) for 2025.
Responding to a question from Hon Fatoumatta Tuma Njie, member for Banjul Central, Dr Samateh revealed on Thursday that the corrected figures show a total of 130 maternal deaths and 80,720 live births in 2025. This produces a national maternal mortality ratio of 161.1 deaths per 100,000 live births.
Of the total deaths, 104 occurred in health facilities, yielding an institutional MMR of 128.8 per 100,000 live births. The minister explained that the earlier discrepancy arose when officials mistakenly used the institutional maternal mortality figure in place of the national total during data extraction from DHIS2.
“While the absolute figures originally submitted were accurate, the error occurred in the ratio presented,” Dr Samateh told lawmakers. “The wrong variable was retrieved from the system, resulting in the institutional ratio being reported as the national total.”
The minister assured the Assembly that maternal mortality data is automatically captured by trained health personnel at facilities across the country through the DHIS2 platform. The system is designed to minimize human error, and the ministry routinely shares raw numbers — maternal deaths and live births — to enable independent verification.
Lawmakers pressed Dr Samateh on measures to prevent future mistakes. He acknowledged the blunder was due to human error by the officer responsible for data retrieval and confirmed that both the individual and the wider technical team had been reprimanded.
In a notable admission, the minister said he personally recalculated the figures with a calculator before facing parliament. “Ministers should be able to rely on technical staff,” he added, “but I wanted to be absolutely certain.”
Dr Samateh noted the error was relatively easy to detect because the underlying variables had been provided to the Assembly, allowing direct comparison. He pledged that the ministry is now strengthening internal verification processes to ensure data generated from DHIS2 is thoroughly checked before public release or presentation to lawmakers.
On the wider maternal health situation, the minister stressed that every maternal death is thoroughly reviewed by the reproductive and maternal health unit in collaboration with stakeholders to determine causes and inform interventions.
He warned, however, that further significant reductions in maternal mortality would require increased budgetary support for midwives, specialist doctors, ambulances, operating theatres, essential equipment, medicines, and upgraded health facilities nationwide.
