By Muhammad Jalal
The Special Advisor to the President on Health, Dr. Salama Ibrahim Anas has said that family planning was critical in addressing the unabated poverty index and security challenges in Nigeria.
Anas stated this in Abuja at the opening ceremony of 8th Nigeria Family Planning Conference for 2024 with the theme Sustaining Commitment for Family p
Planning within the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative; Advancing Progress towards Achieving FP2030 Goals.
“She said that one of the key challenges confronting Nigerians was the lack access to family planning, particularly in the rural areas.”
According to her, to address these challenges there is need to work together to create a future where every woman and girl in Nigeria has access to family planning, adding that statistics showed that Nigeria has higher total fertility rate which poses significant challenges to economic and social development.
She said that to address to the challenges one needed to invest in education and awareness raising programs and underscored the importance of working with the Community Based Organizations and and traditional rulers to promote family planning and ensure that everyone has access to accurate information.
In his remarks, the Deputy Speaker of the 10th National Assembly, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezi Kalu said that the 10th National Assembly would partner with family planners just as he noted that the partnership was a call to action and accountability.
Also speaking, a former Minister of Health , Folorunso Adewole described family planning as a means of curbing population growth and increasing economic growth as well as provide path ways to the challenge faced in the country as it remains effective in reducing maternal mortality rate.
He also said that there was the need to work together to fund inclusive and innovative ideas in expanding access to services towards sustainable progress in achieving diversity and equity.
Earlier, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare , Professor Muhammad Ali Pate , represented by the Prmanent Secretary , Federal Miinistry of Health and Social Welfare, Daju Kachollom Shangti emphasized the need for the girl child education.
He asserted that family planning could only be possible when the girl child was effectively educated, noting that as the Nigeria growth increased there was the need to address maternal mortality as it confronts the economic development of the country.
She also noted that the road to 2030 required strong partnership and tangible action in strengthening supply chain, engaging community, strengthening community engagement efforts and sustaining current demand generating activities.
On his part, the Chairman Local Organizing Committee , Dr. Ejike Oji on behalf of the Association for Advancement of Family Planning said that 2024 was significant family planning conference was a platform for collaborative , innovative and accountability to put stakeholders expert policy makers path of progress and identify ways to advance family planning and reproductive health.
He said that family planning reduced maternal and infant mortality and Strengthened families as well as serve as a transformative tool that empowered individuals and reminded participants that family planning would reduce gender inequality and accelerate national development.
There were goodwill messages from the country’s representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) , USAID, Foreign Common Wealth Office (FCWO) United Nations among Others.
Highlight of the event was annual population lecture series and panel discussion by the National Population Commission (NPC).
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