Advocate for Efficient Policy Implementation for SRHR in Nigeria

Panel discussion on ‘Addressing Policy Implementation and Funding Gaps for SRHR Impact’ at the SRHR Policy Dialogue Hosted by Nigeria Health Watch

By Yecenu Sasetu

Imagine this. There is a girl. We will call her Anna.

Anna is 17. Bright, curious, and just stepping into young adulthood. But there is a weight she carries that nobody sees. When the bleeding gets too heavy and the cramps unbearable, she thinks about walking into the health center not far from her house. But she hesitates, “What if someone sees me? What will they say? Will they think I am sleeping around?”

So, she stays home. Curled up in pain. Afraid. Ashamed. Uninformed. And sadly, not alone.

Anna’s story mirrors that of millions of young girls across Nigeria, girls and women who need sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services but are silenced by stigma, fear, and systems that are not built with them in mind.

That is why the SRHR Policy Dialogue, organized by Nigeria Health Watch, was more than just another Abuja event. It was a call for action, an avenue for advocacy and reflection. And I was there, listening to government officials, development partners, and civil society voices talk about the gaps, the money, the policies, and the people like Anna stuck in the middle of it all.

Let us talk about the panel discussion on ‘Addressing Policy Implementation and Funding Gaps for SRHR Impact’.

I will start with Dr Tomi Coker, the Commissioner for Health in Ogun State. She reminded us that while most states wait on donors, Ogun State is building a system that funds family planning from within. They use the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) smartly. They give out family planning commodities for free. They have even started talking to private sector players and philanthropists for extra support. According to her, “sustainability is not an issue. Funding is not adequate yet, but we have started somewhere.” And honestly? This kind of confidence is refreshing.

Meanwhile, at the federal level, Dr Binyeremi Ukaire laid it bare: Nigeria has raised money through the Sector-Wide Approach. There is also the Hope Primary Healthcare (PHC) project in the pipeline, another big chance to strengthen family planning services nationwide. Her words stuck with me: “We cannot keep playing ostrich. Let us face the issues head-on.”

Because truly, how do we still have clinics running out of contraceptives in 2025?

Then came the education perspective. Mal. Ghali Dambazzau Talle from the Ministry of Education spoke about a quiet but important shift: Comprehensive Sexuality Education is in the curriculum. Teachers are being trained. Menstrual hygiene kits are in schools. This is good news.

But here is the thing: he also admitted that conversations around SRHR commodities like condoms are still not accommodated. “It is a taboo,” he said. How can you teach biology without mentioning protection? This is where civil society groups need to roll up their sleeves and fill the silence with facts. As if Ramatu read my mind, she turned and whispered, “You cannot achieve a lot without advocacy. It lays the foundation for acceptance and access. For anything to succeed, awareness has to come first.” And I nodded slowly.

This is why at Shades Of Us, our work is about making knowledge available.

Now let us talk Kano. Pharm. Aminu Bashir told us something I never expected: for the first time, Kano State now has a family planning line in its budget. You read that right. They also created a health trust fund, and they have monitoring and evaluation systems in place to track progress.

But he was honest about one major challenge: sometimes, even when family planning commodities are available, there will not be people to use them. Why? Misconceptions. Cultural resistance. Misinformation. According to him, “We must engage community and traditional leaders to change the narrative.”

Dr Taiwo Johnson from The Challenge Initiative, TCI, dropped the hard numbers. Nigeria needs $42 million annually for the procurement of family planning commodities. She said, “We are barely getting 60% of that, and most of it comes from donors like the Gates Foundation.”

She revealed the “business-unusual” model of TCI, where they fund 75% upfront, and then coach the states to fund the rest over time. They stay with the states until they become self-reliant. She also mentioned that at one point, it looked like family planning coverage was dipping, but they realized this was due to poor reporting making data unavailable.

So, what is the real issue?

It is not just about a lack of funds; it is also about how we are using what we already have.

It is about the clinics that treat young girls with bombastic side-eyes instead of support.
It is about the teachers too afraid to name the parts of the body they are supposed to teach.
It is about policymakers who draft good strategies but hardly push for implementation, proper monitoring, and evaluation.

It is about Anna.

This policy dialogue did not just highlight problems; it showed that solutions are possible when there is a will. But we need more. More funding. More implementation. More honesty. More courage to break taboos.