Isiyaku Ahmed
The Resource Centre for Human Rights & Civic Education (CHRICED), has launched the fourth phase of its Project of Promoting Democratic Participation in the health sector titled: “Strengthening Maternal Health and Child Care Through Accountability Interventions in Kano State.”
The media launch of the project took place at the Aminu Kano Centre for Democratic Studies, Mambayya House, Gwamaja, Kano on Tuesday with heavy presence of media, civil society advocates and health practitioners.
In his inaugural speech, the Executive Director, CHRICED, Comrade Dr. Ibrahim M. Zikirullahi recalled that on 12th April 2021, he addressed a press conference to close out the third phase of our project titled “Social Mobilization for Transparency and Accountability in Maternal Health Resource Budgets in Kano State.”
He said: “That innovative data driven intervention provided CHRICED, project stakeholders and community activists in Kano State, especially in Gwale and Kumbotso, the opportunity to advocate for transparent and accountable use of maternal health resources.”
“With that phase completed and closed out, we are indeed very excited to announce to you that the fourth phase of the project has now been approved by our distinguished partners, Misereor/KZE of Germany.
“Like it was with previous phases, the overall goal of this new intervention is to reduce maternal and child mortality in two target local government areas by improving inclusion, transparency and accountability in planning and management of health budgets and programs in Kano state.
“The people at the grassroots remain central to the realization of the goals of this project,” he added.
In the implementation of the project, CHRICED will work in concert with communities and key policymakers, agencies in the state ministry of health and their counterparts in Gwale and Kumbotso LGAs.
Through such instruments as voluntary service charters and the monitoring of the implementation of extant laws, CHRICED with help from communities will keep track of key health outcomes as they affect the project target groups.
The project is anchored on key elements of accountability. As such, it shifts the focus to development by people, and not development for people.
At the heart of this project, the key principles of participation and empowerment are indispensable. This approach to ensuring the effective and efficient use of maternal health resources, finds constitutional backing in Section 14(1c) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, which states: “the participation of the people in their government shall be ensured in accordance to the provisions of this Constitution.”
According to Comrade Zikirullahi, in this phase, CHRICED will have synergies with health professionals, community associations and community leaders to generate a model for improving health interventions that can be adopted by the state government and replicated across the state.
CHRICED hopes to achieve key project milestones by reducing the risk of maternal and child mortality in communities.
“Therefore, this project through its outcomes, objectives and goals would engaged the governance process to bring about behavioural changes across the demand and supply side of the maternal health accountability chain.
“Apart from the awareness, it will educate citizens about their rights and responsibilities, the project will push for best practices, transparent approaches and the adoption of open government models to deepen transparency and accountability in the utilization of maternal health resources.
“The major beneficiaries of the intervention are the low-income women in the project communities. Low-income women comprise the core element of this project’s target group, because they are the principal victims of maternal death.
“The vulnerable women, which form the focus of this group live in rural and suburban communities, and they face stark realities occasioned by very poor human development indices. These women are marginalized in terms of the distribution of key social goods and services in their communities,” he said.
Although the problem of maternal mortality cuts across income divides, it is nevertheless predominantly a problem of low-income groups since women belonging to high-income groups are better able to access maternal healthcare information and higher-quality maternal care services, he added.
In their separate remarks, the Supervisory Councilor, Health, Gwale local government area (LGA), Aisha Haruna Kabuga and the committee member on Maternal and Child Health at CHRICED, Alh. Yahaya Umar thanked the organization for its continued efforts in bringing laudable health projects to Kano state.
Adding that the accountability component will ensure check and balances in the health sector.
Aisha said more women and nurses are getting sensitized on the issues Maternal and Child Health Care; harassment by nurses in facilities has reduced drastically as a result of the intervention in Gwale LGA.
Responding to questions from journalists on the scope and coverage of the intervention, Comrade Zikirullahi said the project activities will be centered in Gwale and Kumbotso LGAs but the intervention has a state-wide component.
