Population experts have proffered solutions to Nigeria’s demographic challenges saying that change in strategies and consideration for better education for women will address demographic crisis facing the country.
Experts also call for massive investment in family planning commodities saying this is key in tackling specific challenges.
They identified the need to connect education and development to control population growth of Nigeria.
According to them deliberate and conscious push for family planning is much more important than having several policies on population without implementation
These were consesus among the experts in a session held in Abuja ,supported by the Partnership for Advocacy in child and family health at Scale, a project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation and anchored by the development Research and Projects Centre dRPC.
Speaking on the committment of the Nigerian government to addressing issues of population and it dividends, the Director Family Health Department, Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), Salma Kolo restated President Muhammadu Buhari’s committment to population management.
Kolo said that President Buharu has taken actual steps to control population growth in the country while the role of the ministry is to implement the policies approved by the federal government.
She emphasized that Nigeria does not have the resources to cater for the growing population.
“The Muhammadu Buhari administration is 100 per cent committed to population management in the country”
Mrs kolo further added that the most vulnerable group most affected by consequences of population growth are the women and the children, especially those in rural areas.
“We need to work more in away that we leverage &actualise more domestic commitment to the policies on population in the states”
She disclosed that already committment has been secured from ten states across Nigeria towards the implementation of the policies on family planning.
” Already free family planning commodities are provided by government at federal facilities while efforts are on going to ensure these free commodities are available at private health facilities also”
The first panelist, Olusesan Makinde, the managing partner of Viable Knowledge Masters, who spoke on population dividend said dependency ratio of Nigeria is high disclosed that about 44percent of entire population of the country are under 15years.
Another Panelist, HRH Alhaji Umar Sani Jabbi-Sarkin Yakin Gagi, Sokoto State task stakeholders to pay more attention to the challenge of language barrier ,he said communicating to the communities in their local dialect will properly disseminate right information on family planning issues.
“Messages on family planning should be clear enough to the rural dwellers and most importantly communities need to be well engaged to help them identify the need for family planning”
He called for consistent training programmes for traditional rulers adding that they are in the best position to convey the messages.
The Project Director of the Association for the Advancement of Family Planning (AAFP-PAS), Ejike Orji, is set to speak said 72 per cent of the national population is under the age of 30.
He said about 13- 19 per cent are providing for the over 80 per cent of the population that is dependent.
Orji called for urgent partnership between the government and the private sectors so as to reduce the high rates of deaths, especially amongst women.
“more awareness is also required for women and young girls to adopt family planning methods. He said the Nigerian government has made family planning commodities easily accessible for the people”
He said people especially those in rural communities must be encouraged to access these health services.
