Experts Commend TCI For Boosting Family Planning Uptake In Osun State

Healthcare professionals in Osun State have praised The Challenge Initiative (TCI) for its significant role in boosting family planning uptake within the state.

The initiative has been recognised for its efforts in improving access to family planning services, raising awareness, and encouraging community participation.

The experts gave the commendation on Thursday in Osogbo at a Roundtable Discussion, organised by Family Planning Media Champions in the state with the theme: “Challenges, Successes And Impact of TCI Intervention On Family Planning In Osun State”.

Speaking at the event, Ololade Abatan, Osun State Family Planning Coordinator for the State Ministry of Health, noted that the progress report of family planning activities supported by TCI was encouraging and impactful.

She said the technical, funding and material support received from the group helped in upscaling family planning outreaches and advocacy to rural communities and urban centres.

“She said: The Challenge Initiative has been a dependable partner of the State Government of Osun for the past three years. They are collaborating to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality rate in the state. They also work to reduce the incidence of unplanned pregnancies and ensure that every pregnancy is wanted.

“Owing to the partnership, we have seen a welcome increase in the contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) among couples in Osun state, signifying that family planning advocacy is working here in Osun.

“According to NDHS data, the CPR in Osun State has moved from 29 percent in 2018 to 35 percent in 2023-24, with the numbers representing an increase of 6 percent,” the state coordinator added.

Abatan however noted that whilst the challenges militating against the use of family planning methods by couples in the state remained a problem, interventions by non governmental partners like TCI had helped reduce their incidence.

She explained that over the past three years, the group had engaged in the implementation of high impact practices such as training of service providers and mobilizers, supply of consumables, inreach and outreach services as well as supportive supervision among others.

In the same vein, Roseline Akinlabi, the state Ministry of Health’s Adolescent and Youth Reproductive Health desk officer, praised TCI’s efforts in training health workers who provide Adolescent Friendly Health Services to teenagers in the state.

She said the group’s intervention in creating awareness on Adolescent Health through media outlets and outreaches had helped in providing support to many teenagers who were troubled about their reproductive health in the state.

Akinlabi however pointed out that more needed to be done to confront the challenge of high teenage pregnancy rate in the state and in the country, arguing that the reproductive wellbeing of the country’s teenagers must be prioritized.

She noted, using data supplied by UNICEF, that Nigeria has one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in the world, with 19 percent of adolescent girls aged between 15 and 19 years already having babies.

“We have a serious situation on our hands and we cannot pretend that all is well in the area of youth and adolescent reproductive health in this country.

“Teenage girls who should be in school, studying and looking to the future to contribute meaningfully to the development of Nigeria are already preoccupied with managing unplanned pregnancies,” she lamented.

The AYRH Desk Officer said abstinence education, access to Adolescent and Youth Friendly Health Services, empowerment of girls, educational support, parental involvement and strengthening of family structures could help reduce the incidence of teenage pregnancy in Nigeria.

She called on governments, non governmental organisations, religious bodies, traditional institutions and other stakeholders to join in the campaign to help reduce the high incidence of teenage pregnancy in the country.