The United Nations Population Fund has projected that the challenge of funding family planning in the country may lead to increasing unwanted pregnancies and abortions in 2023.
Stating this at an event to mark the 2023 World Population Day organised by the National Population Commission in Abuja on Tuesday, the Technical Specialist, Maternal & Reproductive Health, UNDP, Dr Adeela Khan said that the funding gap for family planning was widening, increasing from $25m in last year to $32m in 2023.
According to her, this funding gap would lead to 700,000 unintended pregnancies, which would further lead to 300,000 unplanned births and 300,000 unsafe abortions.
Khan, however, noted that the government had been making some efforts through policies, such as the National Policy for Population and Sustainable Development in 2022, and financial commitment to ensuring family planning.
Also speaking during the panel discussion, an experienced Public Health Practitioner, Dr Gafar Alawode, said that the rising population in the country was alarming, adding that the population was growing faster than the economy, which was detrimental.
According to him, Nigeria is producing the size of Liberia, Togo, and maybe Sierra Leone combined every year.
The UNFPA Executive Director, Dr Natalia Kanem, who was represented by UNFPA Nigeria Acting Resident Representative, Ms Erika Goldson, noted that 19 percent of married women in Nigeria could not exercise their right to make decisions, especially regarding having children.
She further stressed the need for women to be empowered, adding that such empowerment would benefit human capital and inclusive economic growth.
Credit: Punch Newspaper
