Muslim women decry non-release of health funds by Niger

The Federation of Muslim Women in Nigeria has decried the non-release of funds for Primary Health Care Development Agency budgetted for the sector for 2016 by the Niger State Government.
The Eagle Online gathered that out of the N42 million budgeted for the Agency, only N1.5 million was released for Overhead Cost, while no kobo has been released so far for Routine Immunisation by the Government of Niger State.
The National Programme Coordinator of FOWAN, Hajiya Farida Sada Yusuf, who made the disclosure at a One-day Community Dialogue on Promoting Child and Family Health Care Delivery, held at the Palace of the Emir of Minna, Dr. Farouk Bahago, said lack of timely release of funds was responsible for the over dependence by the agency on outside donors to implement its immunization activities.
Yusuf also lamented that from a recent Nigerian Demographic Health Care Survey, NDHS 2013, the annual birth figures in Niger state stands at 195,000, out of which 19,000 die before their 5th birthday.
According to her: “The NDHS further explain that for every 1,000 live birth, 100 of them will die before they mark their fifth birthday.
“This translates to one in every ten children in Niger state dying before they are aged five.”
Yusuf said research has shown that both pneumonia and Diarrhea are 12 per cent in the state, saying: “The foregoing US figure makes Niger State the third highest burden of childhood pneumonia.”
The national programme coordinator then appealed to Dr. Bahago to assist in positively influencing government decisions to commit and fulfill its existing commitments in order to address challenges facing the agency that has resulted in the death of children and mothers.
Responding, Bahago, through Alhaji Iliyasu Dhako, a title holder of the emirate commended FOWAN for organizing the media dialogue with traditional, religious leaders and Faith based organization to discuss challenges confronting child and family health and the way out.
He then assured of his readiness to communicate with the state government to ensure that money budgetted for both the SPHCDA and the Routine Immunization for 2016 are released, while calling on religious leaders to participate actively in the campaign on issues that pertained to child and family health in the state.