Participants at a three-day training on Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) in Gombe State have been urged to strengthen community engagement and promote integrated sexual and reproductive health services across the state.
The training, organised under the Integrated Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) and Communicable Diseases Project being implemented by Jhpiego, brought together media practitioners, community gatekeepers, civil society organisations, health workers and government officials to develop community-specific health messages.
Speaking during the workshop, Ibrahim Nenge, State Team Lead of Jhpiego in Gombe State, said the training was designed to equip participants with knowledge and strategies for effective social and behavioural change communication.
According to him, the workshop focused on developing simple and culturally acceptable messages that would improve community understanding of integrated SRHR services and communicable diseases.
“This three-day training is on social behavioural change communication under the Integrated Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights, as well as communicable diseases project,” he said.
“We have diverse stakeholders here from the media, Ministry of Health, Primary Health Care agencies, gatekeepers and community structures. The goal is to develop holistic and context-specific messages that will guide implementation of SBCC in the state.”
Nenge explained that participants were exposed to sessions on interpersonal communication, advocacy, community engagement and message development.
“One of the most important areas for me is community involvement and strengthening adolescent reproductive health services, which has been neglected in many communities,” he added.
Also speaking, Cornelius Nzeribe, who works with Jhpiego on the SRHR and Communicable Diseases Project in Gombe State, said the initiative was funded by the Global Fund and currently being piloted in four states including Gombe, Kwara, Anambra and Ebonyi.
He said the project is being implemented in 15 primary healthcare facilities across Akko, Kaltungo and Gombe Local Government Areas.
“The project is tailored towards strengthening the health system with integrated services for SRHR and communicable diseases,” Nzeribe said.
He noted that the training was aimed at addressing fragmented health communication approaches in communities.
“Programs have been implemented in silos for years, where demand generation focuses on one disease area at a time. What we are promoting now is integrated demand generation where communities can benefit from multiple health services through one engagement platform,” he explained.
According to him, participants at the training included Social Mobilisation Officers, Ward Development Committee members, civil society groups, community-based healthcare workers and media professionals.
“These three days are meant to equip stakeholders with SBCC approaches and strategies to co-create messaging products that will generate demand for integrated health services in communities,” he said.
Director of Public Health at the Gombe State Ministry of Health, Dr. David Karatu, commended the participants for their commitment during the workshop, saying the objectives of the training were already being achieved.
“The participants were carefully selected and they have applied themselves very well to the training. We can already see some of the expected outcomes manifesting,” Karatu stated.
He urged participants to step down the training in their respective communities and organisations in order to sustain the impact of the programme.
“They have been empowered with an essential skill and when they go back, they should practise and reinforce what they have learnt. They should also replicate the knowledge in smaller groups because they cannot work in silos,” he said.
Karatu further expressed optimism that the programme would help develop a pool of trainers in the state capable of sustaining and scaling up integrated health communication interventions even after development partners exit.
“We are hopeful that from this group, the state will have more individuals who can continue to train others whenever there is a need to scale up,” he added.