Chuks Onuoha, Umuahia
Abia State government has declared its support for family planning campaign as the key to population control.
The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Barr Chris Ezem, gave this assurance when members of the Advocacy Core Group (ACG) of the reproductive Health/Family Planning in the state Ministry of Health paid him a visit at Government House, Umuahia.
The SSG commended the group for its sensitization campaign as regards, noting family planning as a topical issue in every part of the world.
Earlier, the State Family Planning Coordinator, Mrs. Confidence Ogboso, disclosed that Abia was rated the least in family planning in Nigeria, having dropped from 15.1% to 10%, lamenting that enough attention had not been paid to family planning activities in the state.
She said: “Women that want to access family planning are not able due to lack of workers that will give such services as the state has only 52 trained workers in family planning to serve 8,387 women. This is a ratio of one health worker to 17 thousand women. It is a herculean task, which cannot be accomplished.”
Ogboso, therefore, pleaded with the SSG to use his good office to influence the release of fund approved by the state government to enable workers swing into action.
On his part, the state CAN Chairman, Apostle Emmanuel Agomoh, while decorating the SSG as a Family Planning Champion, expressed hope that he will influence the release of the approved fund to enable family planning activities to flourish in the state.