By Doris Obinna
Nigeria has outlined its ambitious Family Planning Vision for 2030, setting out a series of commitments aimed at ensuring equitable and affordable access to family planning (FP) services for all citizens, including adolescents, young people, vulnerable populations, and those affected by crises.
The initiative emphasizes the importance of framing FP not only as a health issue but also as a critical driver of socio-economic development. By embedding FP into national and sub-national development plans, Nigeria hopes to reinforce collaboration between government and the private sector in delivering essential resources.
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A key part of the vision is increasing access and choice by scaling up evidence-based practices to meet individual and family planning needs. The government has set a goal of raising the modern Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (mCPR) from its current 12 percent to at least 27 percent by 2030.
This will be supported by strengthening the national FP supply chain to reduce stock-out rates to below 20 percent and ensuring last-mile contraceptive availability, while also boosting data visibility and national capacity.
With this, advocates and health experts have called for stronger collaboration between government, the media, and civil society to improve family planning and Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (MNCH) outcomes in Nigeria.
The Pathfinder International under its Smart Advocay for Strategic Action (SASA) Project trained journalists and media influencers across the states to champion the FP and MNCH in Nigeria. The two-day capacity workshop held in Abuja was organised in conjunction with Population and Development Africa Regional Office (PPDARO)
Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynecology and Obstetrics (Jhpiego) of Kenya.
Declaring Nigeria’s FP Vision for 2030, Chair of Nigeria Civil Society Organisation (CSO) Focal Point for Family Planning (FP) 2030, Dr Ejike Oji, disclosed that government has pledged improved financing for family planning by leveraging existing and innovative domestic mechanisms.
Oji while charging the media to demand for the release of 2023 data report for proper funding of FP//MNCH, announced that his organisation will on October, 17 this year launch it’s 5 million women data base.
Budgetary commitment to FP
He pointed out that annually, a minimum of one percent of the National and State Health budgets will be allocated, amounting to an estimated N4.7 billion and N6.9 billion respectively. “Alongside financing, stronger accountability mechanisms are to be implemented by December 2023. These will include facility and ward-level health development committees, civil society organizations, and media groups monitoring progress against FP indicators.
“Nigeria also plans to establish sustainable systems across national, state, and local levels to meet sexual and reproductive health needs, especially in humanitarian and fragile contexts such as conflicts, health emergencies, and natural disasters.”
He further reiterated that a major focus is reducing harmful social and gender norms that hinder autonomy and access to rights-based family planning information and services. “The government will engage stakeholders through a gender-synchronized approach to ensure inclusive access, particularly for women and girls.
“Finally, the vision underscores the importance of data-driven decision-making. Authorities will define key indicators and employ digital monitoring and analysis techniques to harmonize family planning data hubs into one platform. This evidence-based approach is expected to guide policy actions and program strategies at all levels.
“With these commitments, Nigeria is positioning family planning at the heart of its health and development agenda, aiming to build a more inclusive, resilient, and equitable society by 2030.”
Storytelling, tool to save lives
The Senior Media and Communication Officer at Pathfinder International Nigeria, Bayo Ewuola, emphasised the power of storytelling in advancing maternal health and family planning issues in the country.
He explained that the training was designed to go beyond abstract discussions and focus on life-saving narratives that resonate with communities. According to him, media practitioners have a unique responsibility to highlight the lived experiences of women and families while ensuring accuracy, ethics, and depth in their reporting.
“These are not abstract concepts; they are about saving the lives of our mothers, sisters, daughters, and aunties, people who matter to us.” He stressed that the training was aimed at equipping participants with techniques in investigative, data-driven, and solution-based journalism that would bring attention to real challenges, policies, and community perspectives. “By framing issues differently and focusing on solutions, he noted, the media can contribute to saving lives and influencing policy.”
Also, the President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Comrade Alhassan Yahaya, described the initiative as timely and critical, given Nigeria’s troubling maternal mortality figures. Citing the National Demographic and Health Survey, he reminded participants that communities practicing child spacing could reduce maternal deaths by up to 40 percent.
He urged journalists to take ownership of maternal health and family planning reporting as a service to humanity and as a way of advocating for a healthier Nigeria.
Yahaya praised Pathfinder International for its commitment to building the capacity of journalists, adding that health reporting should move beyond mere coverage to active advocacy. He highlighted the importance of integrating family planning with maternal and child health services and called on journalists to champion critical funding mechanisms such as the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund and state-level counterpart contributions.
Drawing from his own state’s example, he pointed out Gombe’s pioneering release of counterpart funds to the UN Population Fund for reproductive health commodities. He further encouraged journalists to review budget performance regularly, acknowledging modest government efforts while pushing for greater allocations to the health sector.
Despite the challenges of poor remuneration in the media, Yahaya reminded participants that they could still influence change by engaging directly with health commissioners, primary healthcare executives, and policymakers.
He urged active participation in government budget cycles to ensure maternal health receives the attention it deserves, insisting that journalists have both the platform and responsibility to change the narrative on maternal mortality in Nigeria.
Portal tracks service delivery
Also speaking, Lead on Strengthening Health Systems at the Budget Foundation, Dr. Biobelle Davidson, presented the Primary Health Care (PHC) portal, a tool designed to gather feedback from citizens on the state of facilities. She explained that the platform tracks service delivery, facility readiness, and community perspectives, providing opportunities for accountability and improvement. “The PHC portal, which began with 75 facilities across 15 states, has now expanded to cover over 1,000 facilities nationwide. However, this remains a fraction of Nigeria’s 30,000 PHCs.”
She added that efforts are ongoing to scale up coverage, while also addressing challenes of internet access and digital literacy by deploying community champions to support residents in providing feedback. “The platform has encouraged greater use of PHC services among young people and is gradually changing perceptions among older citizens who previously associated PHCs only with antenatal care, child services, or malaria treatment.”
She stressed that improving health systems not only saves lives but also strengthens Nigeria’s economy by supporting healthier, more productive communities and agreed that while government policies exist, stronger partnerships, wider community involvement, and greater visibility through the media are key to driving real progress in maternal, child, and family health across the country.
Media as catalyst
Dr. Oji, while urging the government to take the issue of family planning more serious challenged the media to do more in FP/ MNCH advocacy which will involve agenda- setting, shaping narratives and driving accountability.
“The media has a critical role to play. They should mount a aggressive and strategic media engagement and campaign using various multimedia platforms; traditional and new media to lead awareness campaigns in their communities. They should also engage local primary-healthcare leaders. Gather grassroots data for well researched stories to inform policy shift towards adequate funding and budget release”
Dr. Oji while charging the media to demand for the release of 2023 data report for proper funding of FP/MNCH, announced that his organisation will on October, 17 this year launch it’s 5 million women data base.
Also, Technical Director at Pathfinder, Dr. Sikina Aminbello, said the media remains a critical partner in pushing for accountability and policy implementation. “We’ve been engaging the media as strategic partners in our advocacy work for a very long time, and we’ve seen results, including pushing for budget lines and their release.” According to her, the Smart Advocacy for Strategic Action project, known as SASA, is placing media advocacy at its core to ensure decision-makers act on evidence-based information.
Aminbello noted that while government has made progress by putting policies in place, implementation continues to face obstacles. She identified shrinking fiscal space, competing priorities, and the mass migration of healthcare workers as major challenges. “Government is trying, but we want government to do even more. That is why partnerships are essential, to give visibility to the right information and support government through advocacy,” she added.
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