The Public Health Sustainable Advocacy Initiative (PHSAI) has identified insufficient funding and inadequate manpower as major obstacles to efforts of Lagos State toward reduction of maternal mortality in the state.
Participants at the forum, which PHSAI organised in conjunction with the Pathfinder International and New Ventures Fund, assessed women’s health funding in Lagos state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme had the title: “Women’s Health Advocacy Brief”.
They said that report findings revealed that Lagos state, with a population of no fewer than 28 million, faces significant healthcare challenges.
This is as women in Lagos faced numerous health challenges due to inadequate healthcare resources and gender inequality.
The report explained that bureaucratic hurdles, budget approvals, and fund disbursement delays hinder effective utilisation, adding that essential supplies were often unavailable due to funding limitations.
Citing an example, the report disclosed that the Lagos State Ministry of Health (LSMOH) approved N227,026,558 for family planning/reproductive health budget in 2023, but released only N81,578,438 of that figure.
According to the report, key concerns include reproductive health issues, heart diseases, cancer and mental health problems.
Speaking, the Lagos State Programme Coordinator, Pathfinder International, Margaret Nkire, while reacting to the report, said the report showed that there was more work to do.
Nkire reiterated commitment of Pathfinder International to supporting the state government in ensuring improved maternal health outcomes for women and newborn.
She said, “We hope to see a strengthened and better accountability framework for women’s health programmes in Lagos State.
“We hope to see more release of the health budget to ensure that women get better health. We also anticipate that at the end of this project, there will be an increased budgeting in that regard,” Nkire said.
The Chairman, PHSAI, Barr. Ayo Adebusoye, said that Family Planning (FP) services were crucial in improving maternal health in the state.
Adebusoye called on the Permanent Secretary of the Primary Health Care Board (PHCB) District 3 to create a budget line in the 2025 budget for training new family planning providers by December 2024.
On his part, the Executive Director, PHSAI, Abiodun Ajayi admitted that Lagos State government had made remarkable progress in women’s health through its various funding mechanisms and policies
Ajayi, however, said that challenges like insufficient funding, human resource constraints and cultural barriers persist.
“It is very obvious that the Lagos state government has made progress in women’s health through various funding mechanisms and policies; however, challenges like insufficient funding, human resource constraints and cultural barriers persist.
“But, enhanced partnerships, capacity building and advocacy efforts, alongside robust monitoring and evaluation will help to improve women’s health outcomes,” he said.
In her reaction, Mrs Olubukola Orukotan from the Lagos state Ministry of Health, said, though there were challenges, the state government has intensified efforts to address them.
“For instance, the state government has approved five (out of eight) of our proposals.
“We have started massive sensitisation campaigns at various communities as efforts to improve maternal and newborn health in the state,” Orukotan said.(NAN)
