By Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse
A surge in demand for contraceptives in Jigawa State has exposed critical gaps in the supply chain, sparking calls for urgent intervention to sustain access to family planning services.
This concern was raised in a communiqué issued at the 2024 end-of-year media review meeting on family planning and reproductive health advocacy.
The meeting, organized by the Jigawa State Family Planning Media Forum with support from The Challenge Initiative (TCI) and Development Communications Network (DevComs), was held at the Manpower Development Institute, Dutse.
Participants at the meeting, including representatives from TCI/DevComs, the State Ministry of Health, and the media working group, reviewed the progress made in promoting family planning and reproductive health services throughout 2024.
The review highlighted that sustained advocacy and public awareness campaigns had led to increased acceptance of family planning practices among women of reproductive age across both rural and urban areas. However, the rapid rise in demand has overwhelmed existing supply systems, leading to frequent stockouts of contraceptives at health facilities.
Key challenges identified included inadequate funding for procuring and distributing family planning commodities, irregular release of funds, and affecting service continuity, limited public awareness about family planning options in underserved areas and Capacity gaps within the media working group to sustain advocacy campaigns without external support.
The communiqué called on development partners to strengthen the supply chain and expand public enlightenment campaigns on the importance of family planning for improved reproductive health and family wellbeing.
It also advocated for regular training of journalists and media personnel on sustainability strategies and effective communication approaches.
TCI and DevComs, global leaders in reproductive health support, have been working with the Jigawa State Government since early 2024 to boost service delivery through advocacy, workshops, field visits, and public campaigns
The partnership has focused on key areas, including child spacing, antenatal care, facility-based deliveries, and routine immunizations.
Stakeholders stressed that without immediate steps to address funding gaps and improve supply systems, the growing demand could derail the progress achieved in family planning awareness and adoption in Jigawa State.
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