By Philip Yatai

The Kaduna State Primary Health Care Board (SPHCB) has appealed to the state and local government workers to enrol in Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) for health insurance services.

The Executive Secretary of the board, Dr Hamza Abubakar made the appeal in Abuja on Saturday, during a two-day meeting with Chairmen of the 23 local government councils of the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was organised by the Kaduna State Contributory Health Management Authority (KADCHMA), to find sustainable and innovative funding for healthcare services in the state.

The meeting was supported by Save the Children International, Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL) and Lifiya programme.

Abubakar explained that the more enrolees a facility has the more money that comes to the facility, which could be used to improve medical supplies and facilities.

This, according to him, will improve the quality of service delivery in PHCs across the state and reposition them to favourably compete with private facilities.

He, however, decried a situation where the majority of civil servants in the state enroled in private facilities for the health scheme, thereby depriving the public facilities of a huge source of funding.

“It is sad that the majority of government workers enroled in private hospitals as against PHCs, thereby depriving the PHCs of the huge opportunity for more funding needed to improve the quality of service delivery.

“I am therefore, appealing to the council chairmen to encourage their workers who are yet to enrol to do so and select PHCs so that our public facilities will have increased access to funding opportunities.

“For workers that have enrolled already, we can have a conversation with them to consider transferring their service to PHCs. This will go a long way in improving the quality of health services in the state,” he said.

The executive secretary further urged the council chairmen to work with the management of KADCHMA to encourage community members to enrol in the health insurance scheme.

He said that the resources going to the facilities from KADCHMA and the National Health Insurance Authority, through the Basic Health Care Provisions Funds, were already transforming health services in PHCs.

Dr Sani Abubakar, Programme Manager, Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), pointed out that 7.8 million of the more than 10 million estimated population of the state were multidimensionality poor.

Abubakar said that when compared with other North-West states, Kaduna performed very poorly in the health dimension and was the second most deprived state.

“Not only that, Kaduna state is also one of the worst states to be a child in Nigeria due to high neonatal, infant and children under five mortality.

“Kaduna State is equally the sixth worst state in skilled birth delivery and the ninth worst state in women receiving postnatal care within two days after birth.

“This is why health insurance schemes, particularly the Vulnerable Group Funds (VGF) are critical to increase access to quality and affordable health care services to improve the health indices in the state,” he said.

He explained that VGFs are tailored health insurance funds targeting high-risk populations, aiming to narrow healthcare gaps through customised coverage. (NAN)

Edited by Isaac Ukpoju

By Philip Yatai

The Kaduna State Contributory Health Management Authority (KADCHMA) has engaged the Chairmen of the 23 Local Government Areas of the state to find sustainable and innovative ways to finance healthcare in the state.

The Director-General of the authority, Malam Abubakar Hassan, said at the opening of a two-day meeting in Abuja on Friday, that the move was part of strategies to attain Universal Health Coverage.

The News Agency of Nigerian (NAN) reports that the meeting was supported by Save the Children International (SCI), Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL) and Lafiya programme.

Hassan said that measure was to leverage on the health financing structure in Kaduna State and look at the journey in the last three years and find ways to address all impediments.

He said that the engagement was part of the sustained agenda of Gov. Uba Sani-led administration, which prioritised health insurance as a strategy to reduce out-of-pocket expenditure on health services.

He said that the council chairmen were engaged to become champions and ambassadors of health insurance, with a view to mobilise resources at the local level to support state government efforts.

He pointed out that a larger percentage of the population were being plunged into poverty because of healthcare expenditure, saying that “most households fall into poverty whenever one of them falls sick.

“We have done well in the coverage of the formal sector into the scheme in the last three years which currently stands at more than 98 per cent.

“We have also done a little bit of coverage of the informal sector, which is abysmally small, standing at less than 3 per cent of the over 80 per cent of the population of the state,” he said.

He blamed the low coverage of the informal sector to lack of awareness, poverty, religion, and culture.

He said that the state government has allocated 1 per cent of its consolidated revenue to provide free health care services to the poor and vulnerable groups.

Earlier, Mr Amanuel Momo, Director, Advocacy, Communications, Campaigns and Media, SCI, said that the organisation was working with stakeholders and duty bearers to respect, protect and fulfil the rights of children.

He said that the SCI has supported the government to develop a health care financing strategy and implementation plan towards attaining UHC.

“This will not be achieved without the collective support of partners and stakeholders, particularly the collective support of the 23 local government chairmen.

“One of our expectations from this meeting is a political commitment towards the elimination of the catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditure, which is about 84 per cent in the state.

“We also want a commitment to addressing maternal health challenges at primary health care centres, through improved and efficient financing to increase enrolment into the health insurance scheme,” he said.

Also, Mr Adejor Abel, State Lead facilitator, PERL, said that the governance programme has been working with other partners to ensure a citizens’ responsive governance in the state.

Abel added that PERL was achieving this through support in the development of critical policies and strategies and strengthening citizens’ engagement in the government process.

Dr Sani Abubakar, Programme Manager, Clinton Health Access Initiative, described UHC as a global priority, which seeks to increase access to quality health care by all populations, while reducing their financial burden.

He said that CHAI was working closely with the state Ministry of Health and KADCHMA to strengthen the health insurance intervention in the state.

He reiterated the organisation’s continued support to ensure that KADCHMA increases health insurance coverage in the state.

Similarly, Mr Abubakar Yerima, Local Government Facilitator, Lafiya programme, equally assured the state government of the programme continued support to improve the health indices of the state. (NAN)

Edited by Vivian Ihechu

By Sani Idris

The World Bank-supported Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN), Kaduna State Project Implementation Unit, has trained adolescent girls in the state on how to make reusable pads.

The Project Coordinator, Dr Zainab Muhammad-Idris, who stated this at the opening of the training in Kaduna, said that the goal was to enhance good menstrual hygiene practices.

According to her, the training was necessary in view of the current economic situation that makes buying sanitary pads a huge challenge for young girls.

Muhammad-Idris explained that the measure was to provide young girls with the right information to enable them take care of themselves, health wise.

“One of the key challenges bedeviling the girl child is how to maintain good menstrual hygiene.

“The training, therefore, was specifically designed to give the young girls opportunity to learn more about menstrual cycles, its challenges and some of the hindrances to educational goals.

“The training will also ensure that young girls practice good personal hygiene, which in the long run, will translate to having a good reproductive health system.

“This will ensure society’s survival and propagation once they become adults,” she said.

She added that the programme was also aimed at promoting school enrollment and completion rate, up to a higher level, and help young girls to excel in their learning endeavour.

She explained that the ANRiN project was designed to increase utilisation of quality, cost-effective nutrition services for pregnant and lactating mothers, adolescent girls, and children under five years.

She added that through non-state actors, the project was delivering an integrated basic package of nutrition services and adolescent health services to the targeted groups at community level.

“Other beneficiaries were also being reached at health facilities,” she said.

Earlier, Hajiya Aishatu Jakada, Adolescents Health and Nutrition Officer, ANRiN, said that the participants were drawn from six schools in Kaduna Central Senatorial District.

Jakada added that the training covered adolescent girls in public and private schools, including students with special needs, adding that it would be extended to Kaduna North and Kaduna South Senatorial Districts. (NAN)

Edited by Philip Yatai

By Angela Atabo

Some women and girls in Kabusa community Abuja, have commended an NGO, ‘The Messenger of Hope International Foundation’, for supporting them with pads and menstrual hygiene skills to cushion period poverty.

Period poverty is the lack of access to sanitary products and menstrual hygiene among others.

The Ministry of Women Affairs says 37 million girls and women in Nigeria cannot afford menstrual hygiene products due to high cost.

This implies that every month, they are unable to safely manage their periods.

Mrs Deborah Bary, a housewife, said that since sanitary pads became N800 each, its affordability had become a challenge.

“Most times we women here use pieces of clothes for our menstruation; so, with what we have learnt and with these pads that have come to our community today, life will be easier.

“I am very happy for these free pads, and I pray that God Almighty will reward and bless the hand that was provided in Jesus name,” she said.

Another woman, Mrs Maimuna Aliyu, said that it had been a long time since she bought pads since the prices skyrocketed, adding that the free pads and lecture received was a blessing.

“At least the money we would have used to buy pads would be used to buy food items,” she said.

A teenager, Miss Happy James also expressed gratitude for the menstrual hygiene empowerment adding that her mother stopped buying her pad in 2020 because of the high cost.

Another teenager, Omotola Oluronlake, said: “For giving us free pads today, the NGO has helped a lot of people who are not able to get pads.

“I pray they get more sponsors so that they can keep helping people like us.”

Miss Zainab Musa, also a teenager, said she had never used a pad before because she grew up seeing her mother cutting pieces of cloth for her sisters to use during their periods.

“So, since I started my period, it is the cloth I have been using. Thank God, they gave me a pad, I will know how it feels to use one,” she said.

Ms Mary Odu, a nurse. while enlightening the community on menstrual hygiene, said it was important because it helped females to stay safe from infection and stay clean.

She said: “So we spoke today about proper hand washing before and after using the pad and proper disposal of the pad.

“Then we spoke about nutrition, eating well, taking enough fluid exercising and we spoke about a lot of things. So, they were very excited.”

Ms Chinwe Ogbuja, Founder, The Messenger of Hope International Foundation, said the project was part of the “pad my period campaign” a campaign around menstrual health.

According to Ogbuja , the  outreach is aimed at teaching  people in  communities about menstrual health and hygiene and also lend our voice to ending period poverty by giving out sanitary pads to females.

“Period poverty is endemic, and it is in our system, so we decided to come to Kabusa community as one of the outreach points, and on Friday we are going to Durumi one for the same thing, to carry out advocacy and curb period poverty.

“There are two other phases of this project which is to train the girls in digital literacy and the aim of that is to achieve three things.

“First, it is to make them digitally literate, secondly, to help them to have a voice online, so they can also join the conversation around women’s health.

“There is also empowerment, because once they are empowered to buy their own pads, it will end period poverty.”

She said that the last phase of the project would be to seek for some form of legislation on the government’s commitment to ending period poverty and ensuring that girls had safer and healthier periods.

The Chief of Kabusa, Samuel Kpowu, commended the foundation for the kind gesture.

“The way I feel, my mouth cannot say it all, but I am very grateful to the NGO for choosing Kabusa to bring this benefit to us.

“I am really happy; you can also see that my people are happy.

“The advice that I will give to other Nigerians is that whosoever has the   means to help the poor masses, let him do it. This is the right time to do it because things are going way higher.

“NGOs are trying but I want to recommend that if you know that you are capable of doing something for the masses, come and join because something like this is a blessing from God and He will bless you,” he said. (NAN)

Edited by Kadiri Abdulrahman/Bashir Rabe Mani