The United Nations Population Fund has revealed that the difficulties of families to fund family planning in the country may lead to several unwanted pregnancies and abortions.
This was revealed in Abuja on Tuesday at the 2023 World Population Day event that was organized by the NPC (National Population Commission).
According to Punch, this topic, ‘Dialogue on financing and investment in family planning: meeting the growing demand of Nigerian women’ was brought up in a panel discussion where Technical Specialists, Maternal & Reproductive Health of the UNDP, DR Adeela Khan stated that in 2023 there would be a number of 700,000 unwanted pregnancies.
According to her, this is a result of the funding gap for family planning widening. Further breaking it down, she shared that about 300,000 unplanned birth and 300,000 unsafe abortions should be expected.
“Family planning programme is largely dependent on funding, and that is dwindling funding. As far as 2022, there was a gap of $25m. This year, we are looking at a gap of $32m. What is very important about this gap is that if you are casting it, there will be 700,000 unintended pregnancies, which will result in approximately 300,000 unplanned births and 300,000 unsafe abortions,” she said.
She however noted that the Nigerian government acknowledges the importance of family planning and is working towards investing in it.
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An experienced Public Health Practitioner, Dr. Gafar Alawode, expressed his worry about the alarming population in Nigeria, as he stressed that it needed to be curbed and family planning should be encouraged because, “the implication is that the wealth is not expanding, but the people consuming the wealth are expanding. That means the share that comes to each individual is reduced. And Nigeria is already a poverty capital,” he said.
Ms. Erika Goldson, who represented the UNFPA Executive Director, Dr. Natalia Kanem, added that 19% of married Nigerian women hardly have the power to decide on childbirth which was why women empowerment should also be encouraged.
The Special Adviser on Health to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Dr. Salma Anas, shared the implications of the country’s population growth.
“It is imperative to approach this issue with a holistic and sustainable mindset. One of the key aspects of sustainable development is investment in health and education,” she said.
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