Stakeholders advocate expansion in family planning services

By Stanley Onyekwere

Stakeholders in the Nigeria’s healthcare sector has stressed the need for governments to focus more on strategic purchases on health budgets with particular emphasis on Family Planning (FP) services, in order to achieve EP targets by 2030.

This point was made by  participants at the ongoing 7th Nigeria EP Conference, who noted that expanding access to Family Planning methods will impact on every aspect of human development including the climate, economy, education sector.

Speaking to newsmen on the sidelines of the event, Chairman, Management Committee of the Association for Advancement of Family  Planning, Dr. Ejike Oji, said investment in Family Planning will not only move the nation from demographic crisis to demographic dividends.

Oji, who also commended the Federal government for its commitment towards actualizing its FP 2030 targets, asked that more attention be given to the rural demography in order to fast track its vision of ensuring that 27percent of women in reproductive age access and use modern contraceptive tools.

He explains: “Every dollar spent on Family Planning, you make about $8.4, which is about 800percent return on investment. This will help reduce maternal mortality, reduce infant mortality and improve development as you will be able to spend more in schools.

“Nigeria has made a commitment to put 1percent of its national health budget to issues of  family planning health budget to issues of family planning in its budget between now and 2030. 

“This will help us achieved the funding of family planning which is the first thing we need to do if we must transit from demographic crisis to demographic dividends.”

One of the discussants, Yusuf Nuhu, explained FP 2030 has some guiding principles that will help drive process towards achieving commitments in countries that have made commitment as well as supporting stakeholders that have made those commitments.

Nuhu said: “It:s going to be a country led global partnership with shared learning and mutual accountability for  and commitments and results.

 “Secondly, voluntary persons centered right based approaches to Family Planning with equity at the core and thirdly a commitment to gender equality with support for empowering women and girls and engaging men and boys and communities and lastly being an intentional and equitable partnership with adolescents, youths and marginalised population to meet their needs informed by accurate and desegregated data collection and use.”