From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
The HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (ATM) Movement in Benue State, led by Lawyers Alert (LA) Nigeria and Media, Health and Rights Initiative of Nigeria (MHR), has advocated for gender mainstreaming and gender-transformative interventions in Tuberculosis (TB), HIV, and Malaria services in Benue State.
The movement comprises women-led organisations working to advance health outcomes in HIV, TB, and Malaria.
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1718806029429-0’); });
Under the Law, Rights and Community Empowerment for Social Change project, the Movement convened a two-day strategic policy workshop in Makurdi, facilitated by LA in partnership with MHR, where stakeholders developed policy briefs and a roadmap to ensure inclusion for target populations.
Speaking with our correspondent at the meeting, the Advisor, Legal with Lawyers Alert, Solumtochukwu Ozobulu, who emphasised the need for a gender-transformative response to ATM in the state, said the movement was formed to push for advocacy that would ensure state laws, policies, and service provisions are inclusive of target groups in need, particularly women, vulnerable groups, children, and internally displaced persons (IDPs).
She said: “These are the people who have different health outcomes, and we need to prioritise them when the state is planning. So, the movement collectively has developed policy briefs and action plans for their advocacy target.”
She expressed confidence that the policy briefs and advocacy plans, which were finalised and adopted, would ensure that Benue State ranks high among states that are inclusive in their health interventions, especially as it relates to Malaria, TB, and HIV.
“The movement also developed a roadmap. They have come together to say it is now time that we prioritise gender-transformative interventions in the state.
“Being the drivers, the roadmap would ensure that intersectionality as it relates to gender is factored in and mainstreamed in the state work plan, the state budget, and in the laws and policies of the state.”
Ozobulu lamented that while insecurity has pivoted, different drivers are pushing the frontiers of vulnerability as IDP camps are currently flooded by vulnerable people. “What is their current state as it relates to protecting them from mosquitoes? How is the state ensuring that pregnant women and children in those IDPs are catered for?
“When it comes to human rights violations, we can’t talk enough about the discrimination around HIV and TB and how some people still perceive malaria as a diabolic thing.
“When it comes to the state ensuring that people who need health insurance to be able to access these services, that Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course (DOTS) centres are close to the people. These are the issues that have given rise to this movement. Women and children are at the receiving end of it all, and they impact negatively on these categories of people,” she said.
Media, Health and Rights Initiative of Nigeria (MHR) is a non-profit organisation that leverages media and community engagement as powerful tools to inform and educate young women and girls about their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), as well as the intersection of these rights with other health issues.
Speaking on behalf of MHR, Mr Akinola Dabiri said: “Our goal is to empower them with accurate information to make informed decisions that support their overall well-being.
“In partnership with Lawyers Alert, we are harnessing the reach of our digital platforms, which currently boast over one million subscribers across various channels, to amplify the Law, Rights, and Community Empowerment for Social Change in TB, HIV, and Malaria Response project.”
He said: “This initiative seeks to build a transformative, rights-based movement that addresses systemic community-level challenges and dismantles gender-related barriers in the treatment and response to HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria.”
The post ATM Movement advocates gender-transformative interventions in TB, HIV, Malaria responses in Benue appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.
