PMA2020: Olaolorun recommends more training for Nigerian family planning care providers

NaijaAgroNet:

The co-Principal Investigator for the Performance Monitoring and Accountability 2020, Dr. Funmi OlaOlorun has recommend more training support for the private health care providers in the provision of family planning in Nigeria, and particularly in Lagos, the commercial nerve centre of the country, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Speaking to  NaijaAgroNet during a media parley on the fourth round survey of Performance, Monitoring and Accountability 2017 in Lagos, Dr. Olaolorun said that support for more training for private healthcare providers will improve the provision of injectables, implants among others for the purpose of effective family planning for the country.

According to her, support increases supply of Long Acting Methods (LAM), greater choice and avails provides training and retraining opportunities in order to be up-standing to their call of duty.

Dr. OlaOlorun who doubles as a Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant at College of Medicine, University of Ibadan - ‎College of Medicine, University of Ibadan disclosed that the latest survey under PMA2020, witnessed in Lagos, more women obtaining method of choice and would return to providers in the nearest future, with likelihood of referring a friend.

She stressed that the survey noted increase in the use of long acting methods, especially implants, just as stockouts persist, especially in the private hospitals and clinics.

The PMA2017 cum Lagos-round four survey, she noted was conducted by the Centre for Research, Evaluation Resources and Development (CRERD) and Bayero University Kano (BUK).

The project, she said, was collected data from Anambra, Kaduna, Kano, Lagos, Nasarawa, Rivers and Taraba States.

With support from the Federal Ministry of Health, National Population Commission, National Bureau of Statistics, Lagos State Ministry of Health , Bill & Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health (Johns Hopkins University) and was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, in addition to partnership with Pathfinder International.

The purpose of the survey, Dr. Olaolorun said, was to monitor family planning progress with a set of core indicators and was conducted between April and May this year.

Remmy Nweke/ED, Ops
... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Minister makes case for African scientists, technologists

NaijaAgroNet

The Ghanaian Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture in charge of Crops, Dr Ahmed Yakubu Alhassan, said  family farms need technology propelled by African scientists for increased productivity, reports NaijaAgroNet.

 Alhassan said this while speaking at the Fourth Planning and General Meeting of Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) in Accra, adding that “the era of despair, timidity and sometimes outright cynicism of African agriculture must give way to confidence, mutual trust and co-operation among stakeholders.” He said that this has become paramount in the light of eroding natural resources and dwindling potential for exploitation.

He reiterated the need for indigenous knowledge of the African farmer to be enhanced, to achieve food security and sovereignty, adding that Africa had the needed trained human resources in scientific research to contribute to that knowledge or technology development, NaijaAgroNet gathered.

The three-day meeting with the theme "Building on International Year of Soils, Strengthening Family Farming,” had over 30 participants from the continent in attendance. AFSA is a Pan-African platform of 21 networks and farmer organizations championing small African Family Farming/Production Systems based on agro-ecological and indigenous approaches that sustain food sovereignty and the livelihoods of communities.

Mr Bernard Guri, Chairman of AFSA, NaijaAgroNet learnt, said their concern was to save African seeds, land and African agro-ecological farming practices that had fed Africa, and would continue to feed Africa and its ecology, while enhancing African cultural integrity.

Cyriacus Nnaji/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology
Pix: Dr Ahmed Yakubu Alhassan,