By Muhammad Amaan
Traditional and religious leaders who participated in the Social and Behavioural Change (SBC) community initiative of Breakthrough Action Nigeria, have urged governments and agencies to upscale the programme.
The stakeholders’ made the call at separate remarks on Wednesday during the close-out of the programme tagged “Albishirinku,” a community healthcare awareness programme in Sokoto State.
Alhaji Musa Galadanci, the Sultanate Council’s representative on health, underscored the importance of community awareness as panacea for success in health and environmental related programmes.
Galadanci said the programme was instrumental to increased enrollment of women and children in health services in the state.
An Islamic Scholar, Sheikh Hussaini Mabera, said he gained a lot from the programme, which inspired him to confront various challenges, and was able to resolve conflicting issues, clarify misconceptions and provided solutions to problems.
He added that because of the importance of the programme, some stakeholders were thinking of establishing a network and voluntary contributions to sustain it.
The USAID Breakthrough Action Nigeria Advocacy Adviser, Malam Mukhtar Ibrahim-Gaya, expressed delight that the activities were implemented in accordance with designed procedures, aired in local radio stations, as well as community contacts.
Ibrahim-Gaya said the achievements of the advocacy group, along with the sustainability plans, group members would serve as vibrant tools to facilitate success in all the healthcare policies and services.
He explained that group members have the capacity to be fully integrated into the system to serve as standing committee members that would ensure overall success of future related projects, having gained experience from Breakthrough Action training.
The Sokoto State Coordinator of USAID Breakthrough Action Nigeria, Dr Abdulrahman Ibrahim, said government and people of the state appreciated the efforts and supported the programmes.
He said USAID Breakthrough Action Nigeria did tremendously well in the areas of improving social behavioural change, and expressed the hope that the state government would champion and sustain the activities.
The coordinator identified the creation of a state programme manager, solely responsible for social behavioural change intervention, as a major achievement.
He further expressed delight over readiness and commitment of the state government and the advocacy groups to sustain the enshrined legacies.
Earlier, Dahiru Kamaru, a Director in the Sokoto State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (SSPHCDA), had commended the handlers of the initiative in the state, and assured sustained cooperation.
Kamaru said the programme equipped community members, religious and traditional leaders and other stakeholders with knowledge of healthcare promotion, best services and encouragement to access healthcare services, as well as facility supports.
The group activities included strengthened community awareness on importance of immunisation, antenatal and postnatal care, child spacing, overall Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) and other healthcare services for improved public health.
