By Chima Azubuike, Gombe
The United Nations Population Fund has collaborated with Pathfinder International to organise a four-day workshop on Domestic Resource Mobilisation using the SMART advocacy approach.
The training was designed to enhance advocacy skills in advocating for investment in Reproductive Health supplies as advocates from the states were equipped with advanced skills in SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) advocacy techniques tailored for DRM.
PERISCOPE NIGERIA reports that the benefitting states include Ebonyi, Gombe and Ogun States.
The workshop held at GolfView Hotel, Government Reserved Area Lagos State.
Family Planning Advocates’ capacities were enhanced for advocacy, equipped to effectively communicate the importance of investing in Reproductive Health supplies to key stakeholders in the three states.
Speaking, UNFPA’s Family Planning Reproductive Health Commodity Security Specialist, Dr Joachim Chijide, urged participants to be ready to implement the activities identified for various states by reviewing the processes and strategies outlined during the training.
According to him, they should inform the appropriate stakeholders, in order to adequately monitor the activities.
He urged them to do away with the traditional way of conducting advocacy “and embrace the SMART Advocacy approach which is evidence based. The three states should be able to mobilise a percentage of their health budget for family planning to increase their Contraceptive Prevalence Rate, following the country’s effort to increase the prevalence rate from approximately 12 to 27 per cent by 2030,” he added.
Also speaking, Pathfinder International’s Senior Technical Advisor, Dr Sakina Amin Bello, explained that the three states were selected to push for Domestic Resource Mobilisation in line with UNDPA’s mandate to achieve zero unmet need for family planning.
Bello who doubles as Advocacy Portfolio Lead, added, “the selection of the three states to push for domestic resource mobilisation for family planning commodities was deliberate and done through the guidelines and strategies outlined by UNFPA.”
She applauded the selected states by taking deliberate steps by domesticating procurement of commodities, promising that the training is meant to provide additional support for the stakeholders to implement action plans fully.
She emphasised that she has high expectations from the states in terms of commitment and team work, “so that everybody will be carried along and results will be evident,” Bello added.
On his part, Chairman Advocacy Working Group, Gombe State Alhassan Yahya, described the training as timely, adding “because it will go a long way in helping the states to get more releases from government and reduce maternal mortality rate. The government, civil service and the media should work hand in hand to see that we set agenda for the government to see the need to provide commodities.”
Speaking further Yahya urged all trainees to do the needful in ensuring that equity funds are paid at the right time, “to the healthcare from Ministry of Health across the 11 LGAs in the state. The desire is achieve zero unmet need in the Gombe State,” Yahya added.
The Executive Director of DoveNet, Women Safety and Empowerment based in Ebonyi State, Chief Mrs Ugo Nnachi, explained that the skills acquired during the training will impact on advocacy.
She said, “Advocacy will be done differently now which will hopefully yield good result. There will be collaborations between the government and CSOs, this is a sign of commitment on both sides for a better advocacy.”
She added that the training, with the support of the government will ensure smooth running of the society and with the right advocacy positive results are inevitable, adding “this is an opportunity to save our society.”
On her part, Monitoring and Evaluation Advocacy Working Group, Ogun State Dupe Kukuh, outlined the gains of the workshop to include networking, skills acquired and work plan development.
She added that the training helped her to realise that it is very important to review the budget performance to understand what makes the difference, “particularly a trend between allocation release and impact. The expectation, is to get good and accurate result so as to draw more influences and achieve a sustainable development plan,” she added.
Among some of the sessions facilitated by Dr Akinkunmi Akinbajo, UNFPA’s Maternal Health Family Planning Analyst, was SMART Advocacy Approach – Phase 1: Building consensus presentation and peer review (validation) of steps 1 to 3.
Also, Media and Communication Officer of Pathfinder International, Bayo Ewuola, facilitated on SMART Advocacy Approach – Phase 2: Focusing efforts Step 4: Know the decision maker, where participants were expected to identify the specific decision‑maker(s) with the power to achieve the set objective using knowledge about the decision‑maker(s).
Meanwhile, Dr Bello facilitated on SMART Advocacy Approach – Phase 2: Focusing efforts Step 5: Determine the “Ask”, participants were expected to tailor their advocacy ‘Asks’ to align with the decision-makers interests and priorities using evidence-based, emotional, or ethical arguments to support the advocacy ‘Ask’.
