Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health, and Nutrition (RMNCAH+N) have continued to gain attraction from multiple stakeholders across various levels. Globally 2.4 million children died in the first month of life in 2019. The 2016 – 2017 Nigeria multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) reported 44% of children under five as stunted, representing a 16% worsening from 2013.
In March 2017, MCSP facilitated the formation and inauguration of ASRH TWGs in Ebonyi and Kogi as platform to drive ASRH in the states. Additionally, MCSP set up four adolescent corners in four health facilities to offer Adolescent and youth-friendly services and demonstrate the need for the states’ provision and a scale-up of ASRH services. Data collection was completed for Phase 1 of formative research activity to inform plans and interventions for Adolescents and youth-friendly health services in Ebonyi and Kogi. In Nigeria, the HIV prevalence rate stands at 1.5, with 1.9million people living with HIV.
While Adolescent and young people constitute 48 percent of the country’s population, the HIV prevalence amongst this group has risen from 0.2 percent for Adolescent aged 15-19 years to 1.3; the most significant change is the lunch of the RMNCAH+N coordinating platform to ensure that coordination of RMCNAH+N action is galvanized and maximized. The group within the AYP spectrum are not covered within the investment case. There is an opportunity where strategic plans developed by NACA and other stakeholders can be harmonized and aligned with the RMCAH+N using the investment case strategy as an entry point to ensure implementation.
The significant gap with MDAs implementing strategies is that MDAs do not fund the implementation themselves; they use funds from donor partners and other stakeholders to support implementations. However, donor partners fund programs according to their priorities, thereby calling the shots on how those funds will be used. The youth representatives need to understand the process; for example, the GFF process is a very technical process in which understanding is complex. During the implementation process of the MNCH strategy in 2007, Core Technical Committee (CTC) platform was inaugurated in 24 of the 36 states of the country; however, when the strategy was updated to RMNCAH+N and implementation began, five (5) state have set up a coordinating platform as a step ahead of the CTC that was initially inaugurated.
Recomendation
Government should collaborate with the CSOs and NGOs to review the investment case and implement recent global strategies; new guideline on developing the investment case have been created. A new component has been added worldwide following Nigeria’s investment case development. They must also determine the implementation level, include new difficulties, and prioritize AYP inputs in every investment case’s implementation step.