By Khadijah Kubau
The Kaduna State Government has launched and disseminated its Family Planning Strategic Plan, aimed at expanding access to quality family planning services and improving maternal and child health outcomes across the state.
The plan was launched during the second day of a two-day stakeholders’ meeting organised by the Kaduna State Ministry of Health.
Speaking at the meeting, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Umma K. Ahmed, said the strategic plan was developed through months of consultations, collaboration and technical work involving government officials, development partners and other stakeholders.
Dr. Umma Ahmed described family planning as one of the most effective interventions for improving the health and wellbeing of women and children, noting that it enables individuals and couples to make informed decisions about the timing and spacing of pregnancies.
She said the initiative would contribute to reducing preventable maternal and child deaths, while improving the educational, social and economic wellbeing of families and communities.
According to the Commissioner, the strategic plan provides a practical roadmap for expanding equitable access to quality family planning services across all 23 Local Government Areas of Kaduna State.
She explained that the document sets out clear priorities, defines the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders, and establishes mechanisms for monitoring progress and ensuring accountability.
Dr. Umma Ahmed reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to strengthening primary healthcare services, improving the availability of family planning commodities, building the capacity of healthcare workers and promoting community engagement.
She, however, stressed that government could not achieve the objectives of the plan alone, calling for sustained collaboration among development partners, healthcare providers, traditional and religious institutions, civil society organisations, the private sector and communities.
The Commissioner commended the Gates Foundation for its support towards the development of the strategic plan, describing the assistance as a demonstration of its commitment to improving reproductive health outcomes and strengthening health systems in Kaduna State.
She also appreciated technical officers from the state health team and experts from partner organisations for their contributions to the planning process.
Dr. Umma Ahmed urged stakeholders to remain committed to implementing the strategies contained in the document, stressing that the success of the plan would ultimately be measured by its impact on the health and wellbeing of women, children and families across Kaduna State.
She said the state government, under the leadership of Governor Uba Sani, would continue to support initiatives aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of the people.
The stakeholders also reviewed the performance of the state health sector and identified key areas requiring further improvement.
Participants noted that although health budget allocations remain strong, timely budget execution continues to be affected by delays in the release of funds.
They also identified hidden costs associated with the free maternity care policy and called for clear definition of the services covered at the Local Government Area level to prevent confusion and unexpected financial burdens on women seeking care.
The review further recorded improvements in monitoring and performance review systems, as well as stronger collaboration among the health, agriculture and local government sectors and development partners.
Among the priority actions identified were clarification of the free maternity care policy, expansion of maternal death reviews, improvement of immunisation services and the scaling up of integrated outreach programmes.
Stakeholders noted that integrated outreach activities have already been harmonised between the Kaduna State Primary Health Care Board and the Ministry of Health, using fully equipped mobile diagnostic and therapeutic trucks to provide multiple health services to communities.
They also called for the implementation of biometric attendance systems to replace the existing manual process, stronger performance-based accountability, improved recruitment and retention of health workers in rural areas, better procurement and planning, faster fund releases and cash backing, as well as measures to reduce duplication in health financing.
Other priorities include expanding health insurance coverage, addressing malnutrition, particularly stunting, strengthening multi-sectoral collaboration, integrating mental health indicators into routine performance reporting and increasing domestic financing for high-impact health interventions.
At the Joint Annual Review 2026, participants reached consensus on several action points, most of which are expected to be implemented by December 2026.
On HIV/AIDS, stakeholders agreed on the need to scale up the procurement of HIV test kits and strengthen maternal HIV testing during antenatal care visits at primary healthcare facilities.
On human resources for health, the review called for targeted support to strengthen the capacity and educational standards of health workers, trainers and mentors involved in training the state’s health workforce.
Participants also recommended increased awareness to encourage spouses, particularly men, to accompany their partners for antenatal care visits, as well as the introduction of paternity leave to improve male involvement in maternal healthcare.
The stakeholders further called for a root-cause analysis to identify factors responsible for low facility-based deliveries among women attending antenatal care, with the State Primary Health Care Board expected to lead the process.
They also recommended the inclusion of mental health data in routine reporting and the expansion of social autopsies to complement verbal autopsies conducted with next of kin.
According to the stakeholders, social autopsies would help identify community-level factors contributing to maternal deaths and guide the development of appropriate interventions.
They also agreed on the need to develop targeted community-focused social and behavioural change campaigns involving men, traditional and religious leaders and other influential community stakeholders to address gaps in male participation in maternal healthcare.
On nutrition, the review recommended a detailed assessment of existing Ministry of Agriculture data and the triangulation of nutrition-sensitive agricultural indicators with health-sector data to determine the underlying causes of stunting in Kaduna State.
Although interventions have contributed to a reduction in wasting, stakeholders observed that stunting remains a concern and requires sustained, long-term interventions because of its chronic nature.
The review also called for intensified training of health workers on the prevention and management of malnutrition.
On service utilisation, stakeholders stressed the need for a transparent free maternity care policy that clearly identifies covered services and any unavoidable out-of-pocket costs to reduce unexpected financial barriers for women.
They said clear communication of the policy would enable women and families to know exactly what services to expect when they visit healthcare facilities.
Participants further recommended strategies to increase the enrolment of pregnant women in health insurance schemes to ensure continuity of care throughout pregnancy and delivery.
On immunisation, stakeholders called for the identification of zero-dose children and the conduct of an index analysis to understand and address the underlying factors responsible for children missing routine vaccinations.
Regarding health financing, the review recommended strengthening domestic financing mechanisms to sustain proven interventions, including integrated mobile outreaches and community mobilisation activities, particularly in view of declining donor funding.
On human resource accountability, stakeholders called for the operationalisation of biometric attendance systems to improve workforce accountability.
They also recommended stronger collaboration with relevant agencies to institutionalise performance-based accountability, including appropriate sanctions, disciplinary measures and rewards.
The review further highlighted the need to improve recruitment and retention of healthcare workers at primary, secondary and tertiary levels.
Stakeholders noted that approval had been secured to recruit 1,800 healthcare workers at the primary healthcare level over a five-year period, but stressed the need for additional approval to recruit personnel for secondary and tertiary healthcare institutions.
They also raised concerns over staff attrition and the reluctance of some health workers posted to rural communities to remain at their assigned locations.
The stakeholders called for effective measures to address these challenges and ensure that healthcare workers remain available in the communities where they are posted.
All the agreed action points are expected to be implemented by December 2026.
