STAKEHOLDERS in family planning have expressed concern about out-of-stock of implant, a long-acting reversible contraceptive in Nigeria.
Dr Ejike Oji, a physician and chairman, Management Committee, Association for the Advancement of Family Planning, speaking on the sideline of the fifth Scientific Conference of the Society for Public Health Professionals of Nigeria (SPHPN) in Lagos, said the development portends danger for Nigeria.
“As we speak, we don’t have implants in the country; if there are no implants, some of the gains that we have made in family planning services will be lost. The reason for the out-of-stock is that there is no budget line for family planning in 2022.
“Women’s compliance in the health system is poor. Many women cannot come monthly to refill their pills, so they are given a long-acting reversible contraceptive like the implant to ensure that they are covered for at least a couple of years.
“Dearth of contraceptive like implants means that Nigeria’s modern contraceptive rate will go down, unintended pregnancies and abortion, as well as its complications will likely go up,” he said.
Country Director, MSI Nigeria Reproductive Health Choices, Mr Emmanuel Ajah, in a reaction, said the level of unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortion on a daily basis in Nigeria, particularly among young people, is not acceptable.
“There are no contraceptive commodities like implants in the health facilities, although we have providers trained to offer services. Also, in some communities, especially in northern Nigeria, we have really poor human resources for health. So, as we have done task shifting, there must also be trained hands and equipment to continue to provide services,” he said.
In a reaction, Mr Lucky Palmer, the Country Director of Ipas Nigeria Health Foundation, said conversations on condom use and distribution of free condoms have reduced in the last five years, worrying that there might be an upsurge in HIV and other sexually-transmitted infections in Nigeria.
Mr Palmer said social media is filled with different celebrities having sex without condoms and sending wrong messages to the young ones.
“For me, the biggest concern is that our government seems not to see it as a problem; anything that a donor is not funding, nobody talks about it or sees it as a problem. In the next five to 10 years, cases of HIV will likely go up.
“If every man can use a condom every time they have sex, that is the best solution for unwanted pregnancies. If there is no unwanted pregnancy, there cannot be an abortion. It will also protect against sexually-transmitted infections,” he said.
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