By SADIQ ABUBAKAR, Maiduguri –
Borno State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (BSHCDA), in collaboration with The Challenge Initiative (TCI ) and other partners have organised a stakeholders engagement meeting to review 2nd quarter performance and promote Social and Behavioral Change in improving child birth spacing in the state.
The stakeholders engagement meeting which was held on Monday in Maiduguri brought together participants from the media, religious and community leaders, health educators and other relevant stakeholders aimed at enlightening citizens to make informed decision about child birth spacing.
The engagement also reviewed the performance of the 8 implementing local government areas of Biu Hawul Mafa,Konduga, Kaga, Jere MNC and Magumeri, where the forum emphasized on the need to improve social mobilization through media and community engagements.
A hospital survey conducted by the Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria (SOGON) reported a high maternal mortality ratio of 1,549 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, indicating that, the situation has reduced as a result of the intervention of the TCI comparing Borno State and Afghanistan before the interventions of the partners.
The review of the second quarter performance of the program in Borno state from April to June 2023 indicated that Magumeri, Biu and Hawul had over 70 percent of people reached, referred and completed the contraceptive usage, while MNC and Mafa had the lowest below 30 percent.
Speaking in an interview with journalists, the representative of the Borno State Primary Health Care Development Agency (BSHCDA),, Babakura Ali commended the TCI for supporting the Borno State government.
He urged the implementing partners to step up community engagement, house to house campaign to improve on the number of the reached, referred and completed contraceptive to achieved child birth spacing for healthy society.
