Bianca Iboma-Emefu
a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Family Health Initiative Ogun (FAHIO), working as an advocacy working group, has called on the state government to allocate and release more fund to family planning and adolescent healthcare programmes in its proposed 2020 budget.
The group stated that consideration for investment in the programmes should target procurement of adequate consumables to health facilities across the state to meet the demand of intending clients for family planning services. It also demanded provision of youth-friendly centres for information and services that would impact on the adolescents and young person’s reproductive health lifestyles, as well as prevent them from contracting STIs/HIV and AIDS, unwanted pregnancies, abortion among others.
The media officer of the group, Mrs. Waliyat Odemakin, added that efforts to strengthen all aspects of the health sector in the budget process requires a focused thinking, policy and funding decision that would allow prudent allocation of resources to strategize priorities within a major sector.
Odemakin expatiated that government spending on family planning and childbirth spacing services would save unwarranted health care costs on maternal and newborn issues, saying it would help government save fund for development of other sectors of the economy such as infrastructure, power, housing and others.
“Family planning and childbirth spacing services have been proven to reduce maternal and child deaths that could occur as a result of pregnancy related complications, while promotion of activities on adolescents and young persons will help them access the right information”, Odemakin emphasized.
The group has admonished family planning providers in the public health facilities to make judicious use of consumables provided by the state government to high volume facilities recently and ensure that services are offered free of charge.
This was brought to the front burner in a release at the end of the monitoring exercise by the members of the group to some health facilities where the consumables were distributed to, in Ogun Central, West and East Senatorial Districts of the State.
The group noted that in recent past, findings have shown that the unavailability of consumables hindered the accessibility of family planning services resulting to low uptake of contraceptive in the state.
“We identified this gap and advocate the necessary quarters in order to help the state in achieving its 52 per cent contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) by year 2020.
“FAHIO as a coordinating mechanism and platform for advocacy, policy dialogue, partnership development and resource mobilization for family health will not relent in its effort to accelerate improvement in the state reproductive health outcomes,” the group stated
It urged community, religious and traditional leaders and other relevant stakeholders to contribute to the enhancement of health accessibilities through their preaching and relationship with the people, particularly with a view to championing the redemption of hardship suffered due to maternal and infant mortality.