As part of efforts to ensure and sustain the reproductive rights of women, development health partners have trained Family Planning Supervisors, and Monitoring and Evaluation officers from the 16 local government areas in Kwara State.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the two-day training programme, centred on ‘Data Strengthening Capacity Building’ was organized by the Delivery Innovation in Self Care project, with funding from Children Investment Fund Foundation.
Other implementing partners are the Society for Family Health and Population Services International with support from the Federal Ministry of Health, Challenge Initiative and MSI Reproductive Choices.
Speaking at the programme, the Social and Behaviour Communication Coordinator of SFH, Mr. Michael Titus, explained that the DISC project is working with the Kwara Ministry of Health to scale up quality self-care options, starting with subcutaneous Depo-Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA-SC) self-injection.
He explained that there are different modern methods of family planning, including condoms, oral pills, injectables, implants and intra-uterine devices.
According to him, the duration of these methods varies from daily to two-monthly, three-monthly and three to five years.
He said, “The DMPA-SC Self-Injection we’re talking about here is a three-month injectable. This enables a woman to take charge of her family planning services or do it by herself.”
Titus noted that health providers train women on how to self-inject at least twice, where they are also provided with a take-home injection to last for another six to nine months.
He also pointed out that the DMPA-SC are available in pharmacies at affordable cost.
Titus explained that the use can be more private and confidential as it can be done in the bedroom, office and shops.
According to him, training men and women on self-care interventions increases the opportunity for the country to achieve Universal Health Coverage.
He pointed out that it helps to reduce the workload of health providers, more so with the dwindling number of health providers in the country occasioned by exodus, retirement and inadequate funding.
The SFH representative stated that the injectables are provided at government facilities majorly free, saying it costs less than N1,000 at the pharmacy.
“Child spacing is a voluntary decision made by an individual or a couple on when to get pregnant, the number of children to have, the intervals they want to have children, and it is by choice, and not by mistake,” he said.
Also speaking, the Assistant Chief Statistical Officer in the Federal Ministry of Health, Mr. Toye Femi, encouraged the state government to sustain the health project, which development partners had funded for about five years.
He said the capacity building programme is being carried out in 12 states, adding that it is being rounded off in Kwara, Akwa Ibom, Abia and Plateau states.
Hajia Bilikis Ibrahim, the state Family Planning Coordinator, said the programme is part of various activities of the state government aimed at encouraging modern family planning methods among women in the state.
She said that the programme, which started in five local government areas, is being extended to 16 local government areas.
Ibrahim also said that the programme is aimed at promoting and empowering women on their reproductive health.
“The training programme would also improve the skill and knowledge of health providers towards achieving quality healthcare delivery in the area of family planning,” she said.
(NAN)
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