Shortage of Family Planning Commodities in Kaduna, Worrisome – FHANI …..Says Families now Giving Birth to Unplanned Babies
By Alex Uangbaoje, Kaduna
A group, Family Health Advocates in Nigeria Initiative (FHANI), has expressed worries over the shortage of family planning commodities currently being experienced in Kaduna State, which they said has reduced the number of women accessing the service from 24% to 12%.
Ag Secretary of FHANI, Iliya Kure who said any organization working to see the success of family planning must be concerned with the development, noted that the situation is now forcing some families to give birth to children they never planned for.
Kure, said this during a Media Roundtable in Kaduna on Tuesday.
According to him, “a recent survey by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), released early this year revealed that there is shortage of family planning commodities and has drastically reduced the number of women accessing family planning services in the state from 24 per cent to 12 per cent.”
He therefore, called on the state government to take advantage of the family planning fund in the “Save One Million Lives” basket to boast family planning services in the state.
FHANI, appealed to the state government to pay the contractor that supplied the family planning commodities purchased in 2018 to pave way for early supply this year.
“Based on the information available to us, the procurement made last year by the Kaduna state government was on credit, and we are appealing to government to pay the contractor so that procurement for this year can be made.
“We are also calling on the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, to begin the process of requesting for funds allocated to family planning in the 2019 budget.” Kure added.
He however, commended the Federal Government for making delivery of the emergency supplies of commodities approved for the state, saying, “we understand that the FG has made available commodities which is now in Kaduna.
“We commend the Kaduna state government for training more service providers and increasing service delivery points from 534 to 711.”
