Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director, United Nations
Population Fund UNFPA, says the fund is committing over 75 million
dollars to boost reproductive health and data generation in
Nigeria. Osotimehin disclosed this to newsmen in Abuja.
He said the money covered the value of seventh country programme between 2014 and 2017.
According to him, the amount budgeted for core programme is 29.2 million dollars while the non–core is 45.8 million dollars.
Osotimehin said that UNFPA had been in Nigeria since its inception in
1969, adding that it had participated in numerous activities in the
country.
“We have always been working with the Nigerian formations, either
regions or states; we also worked with Civil Society Orgnisations.
“What we do in essence is to work with government to ensure that
women and girls’ lives are cherished, so that they go to school and stay
in school.
“So that women, when they are ready, can have their children safely
and also space their birth, to ensure they don’t die given birth.
“And they can have the number of children they can afford to have
without any issue or coercion; these are the things we do and continue
to do,’’ Osotimehin said.
The UNFPA boss said that the organisation also collaborated with
government to conduct census, adding that the data generated assist
government in its projections and planning.
According to him, the body is presently discussing with the National Population Commission on the next census.
Osotimehin said that young girls constituted between 30 and 40 per cent of maternal mortality burden in Nigeria.
“We encourage women to take family planning; it enables them to take control of their lives.
“When you talk to women and ask them, they will tell you I have six
children, but if I had the choice I would rather have three or four.
“The problem always is that they don’t have the opportunity to make
those choices, and the choices can be made if they have access to the
commodities and are able to make such choices.”
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“UNFPA would always be willing to assist women who would want to
space their birth, and have the number of children they would want to
have by facilitating their access to reproductive services.”
(NAN)
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