Nigeria’s health minister, Osagie Ehanire, has said that one percent of the health budget at all levels of government will be allocated to family planning (FP).
The decision, said the minister, is part of efforts to reduce the maternal and child mortality rate in the country. Mr. Ehanire revealed this in Abuja on Tuesday as he launched the Reproductive, Maternal Newborn, Child, Adolescent and Elderly Health Plus Nutrition (RMNCAEH+N) policy document and re-launched the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) steering committee ).
It was in commemoration of Safe Motherhood Day and Vasicovigina Fiscula (VVF) 2022.
The event was organized by the Ministry of Health in alliance with the Rotarian Action Group for Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health and the German Cooperation.
“The Nigerian federal government is working to ensure the availability of family planning products and services by launching the FP2030 commitment to increase national financing and sustainable financing by allocating one percent of the health budget at the federal and state levels and perhaps also at the local government level. ”, said the minister.
In addition, he said that there are other actions taken by the government to ensure that everyone is aligned with the initiative. Mr. Ehanire said the strategy enables eligible citizens, including teens, youth and vulnerable populations, to make informed decisions and gain equitable and affordable access to a quality family. planning participation in national development.
“Surveillance and response to maternal and parental death is a priority initiative that gives the serious issue of auditing maternal, parental and child mortality and morbidity the attention it requires,” he added.
VET in Nigeria
Family planning in Nigeria is at a low level, which is an important factor in the fertility pattern and population growth rate.
Despite various efforts in recent years, the modern contraceptive prevalence rate is around 12%, indicating the need for more innovative strategies and service delivery channels.
“Private sector channels have proven to be viable, with data indicating that the sector provides about 60 per cent of FP services, even among the poorest women in Nigeria (provide reference),” the commitment document says. Nigeria FB 2030.
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The 2019 NPHCDA Health Facility Assessment said there are only 8,389 operating primary health care facilities out of 25,607.
The figure is grossly inadequate and cannot meet the needs of all women of reproductive age in Nigeria. “Therefore, there is a need to employ high-impact strategies to rapidly scale up FP service provision,” the document says.
The minister said that the initiative has been expanded to also incorporate infant mortality audits, turning it into Surveillance and Response to Maternal, Natal and Infant Death. The bill has been approved by the National Assembly and is pending presidential sanction.
The launch of the policy document
The minister said that these developments are what informed the release of the revised NPCDSR guidelines and tools at the inauguration of the steering committee.
The committee will be chaired by the honorable minister of health, while the president of the society of gynecology and obstetrics and the president of the Nigerian Pediatric Association (PAN) will be vice presidents. Other members of the commission are the presidents of the senatorial and senatorial health commissions, health commissioners of the RNMCAEH+N and of the states, among others.
“Parastatals and ministries such as the NPHCDA, and the National Statistical Office, the National Population Commission, the National Center for Disease Control and the National Health Insurance Agency, the Federal Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the National Agency of Orientation, they are all there”, he said.