Bauchi Stakeholders charge men on Active Participation in Family Planning
Eniola Yekini
Stakeholders in Bauchi State have urged more men to actively participate in reproductive health decisions.
The stakeholders made the call during a dialogue meeting organised by the Better Life Restoration Initiative (BERI) in Bauchi, stressing the need for greater male involvement in family planning.
They said family planning should not be regarded as solely a women’s responsibility, noting that increased participation by men would promote informed decision-making and improve reproductive health outcomes among families.
The Executive Director of BERI, Mrs Laraba Isaac, said the advocacy was being undertaken under the ASPIRE Project, implemented by Plan International Nigeria with funding support from Global Affairs Canada in Bauchi and Sokoto states.
She said the project seeks to improve adolescent wellbeing, particularly among girls and young people, through access to accurate health information, gender equality, adolescent-friendly services, community engagement, advocacy and school-based interventions.
The stakeholders used the medium and called on the Bauchi State Government to increase budgetary allocation for family planning interventions to ensure women, men, adolescents and young people, particularly those in underserved communities, have access to accurate information, counselling, quality services and reliable family planning commodities.
They urged the Ministry of Health to strengthen budgetary provisions for family planning, ensure timely release of approved funds and promote effective utilisation of resources.
The participants also advocated stronger community-level awareness to address misconceptions and misinformation surrounding family planning and encourage more men to access and support the use of appropriate services.
They further called for sustained training and capacity development for health workers to enable them provide respectful, confidential, quality and youth-friendly family planning services.
The stakeholders maintained that greater male involvement, coupled with increased government investment, would strengthen family planning programmes and contribute to improved reproductive, maternal, newborn and adolescent health outcomes in the state.
They urged government, communities, parents, civil society organisations and development partners to strengthen collaboration towards promoting shared responsibility for family planning and improving the wellbeing of families across Bauchi State.