President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday launched the United Nations Fund for Population Activities’ (UNFPA) State of the World Population report with a reaffirmation of his administration’s commitment to enhancing the welfare and empowerment of girls, women, and young people in Nigeria.
Speaking at the unveiling of the report at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Tinubu emphasized the need to address the challenges facing this vulnerable demographic.
The UNFPA’s flagship State of the World Population Report is titled, “Interwoven Lives, Threads of Hope: Ending inequalities in sexual and reproductive health and rights.”
Wednesday’s launch followed the global launch, which held in Geneva on April 17, 2024.
The president, who was represented by the Minster of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, noted the imperative of ensuring that girls stay in school and avoid early motherhood, providing access to quality healthcare and services, and implementing laws to end gender-based violence and harmful practices such as early/forced marriages and female genital mutilation.
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He said his administration is committed to keeping hope alive for girls, women, and young people by fulfilling its promises to accelerate actions in Nigeria, adding that his government will ensure that no woman dies giving birth, and that every girl has access to quality education and healthcare.
Tinubu said that with a focus on strengthening the four D Principles of Development, Democracy, Demography, and Diaspora, the government aims to integrate modern solutions into policies and programs that benefit this demographic.
He stated: “Meeting the aspirations of the population affected by these inter-woven threads, who are mostly women, girls and young people, places a great demand and a sense of duty on us all to keep that hope alive. We must fulfil the promises to accelerate actions in Nigeria and ensure no woman dies giving birth.
“We must ensure that girls stay in school instead of becoming mothers at tender ages, provide access to quality health care and services everywhere, including accelerated access to family planning as fundamental for managing our population.
“Also, we must ensure the implementation of laws to end gender-based violence and harmful practices like early/forced marriages, female genital mutilation, that are against women and girls and indirectly against true and enduring development of our nation and people.
“The narrative in the paragraph that was just quoted above, are part of the concerns that formed the Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly anchored on strengthening the four D Principles: Development, Democracy, Demography and Diaspora, aimed at integrating modern solutions into our policies.
“With a dynamic population of 220 million that is youthful, growing fast and projected to 450 million by 2050, making us among the fourth or fifth largest, most populous countries in the world by then, and with our rich cultural diversity, we are poised to harness our demographic potential for development of our country.
“I want to assure you, that we are taking bold steps and committed to addressing issues that affect our youth reproductive health, and in December 2023 I launched the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative, through the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, which is anchored in a sector-wide approach and the Basic Healthcare Provision Pact.”
In her remarks, the Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Natalia Kanem, said that the State of World Population report highlights that since global measurements have been kept, two countries – India and Nigeria – have recorded the highest number of maternal deaths.
However, she noted that Nigeria has reduced the maternal death rate by more than 11 percent between 2013 and 2018, which she said must be applauded.
She said the remarkable reduction in the number of women worldwide dying in childbirth – 34 per cent since 2000 – is largely attributable to progress in Nigeria and India.
Kanem stated that the State of World Population report presents important data that show that in many countries inequalities in such key measures as access to health care have been reduced.
But she noted that in other places, disparities are actually widening
and inequalities still persist everywhere.
“Indeed, in some places, the rights of women, girls and gender-diverse people are the subject of increasing pushback,” she regretted.
According to her, there have been advances in combatting gender-based violence and harmful practices which has seen a 10 per cent drop in adolescents subjected to female genital mutilation in the past decade in Nigeria.
She also noted that as of 2023, 34 of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory have adopted the Violence Against Persons Act of 2015 into their own legal structures.
The UNFPA boss lamented that progress is slowing, adding: “After the impressive gains made in combatting maternal mortality, annual reductions in the number of maternal deaths have flatlined: since 2016, the world has made zero progress in saving women from preventable deaths in pregnancy and childbirth.
“One woman in four cannot make her own health-care decisions. One woman in four cannot say no to sex. And nearly 1 in 10 are unable to make their own choices about whether to use contraception.
“We have, for the first time, data on whether women’s bodily autonomy is strengthening over time – and in 40 per cent of countries with data, it is actually diminishing.
Kanem stressed: “We need to redouble our efforts to achieve comprehensive, universal and inclusive health care grounded in human rights and modern science.
She further said: “Despite progress the maternal mortality rate in Nigeria remains high, at over 1047 per 100,000 live births. UNFPA stands shoulder to shoulder with the government and people of Nigeria to change that statistic.
“Our report shows how investing in sexual and reproductive health benefits all of us.
“Comprehensive sexuality education, ending gender-based violence, promoting gender equality and ending unmet need for contraception, these steps would contribute trillions of dollars to the global economy, and unleash gains in terms of education, productivity, workforce participation, and human happiness.
“We have every reason to act – for human rights, for gender equality, for justice and for the world’s bottom line.”
Speaking earlier, Chairman of the National Population Commission, Nasir Isa Kwarra, noted that as the world population reached the 8 billion recently, Nigeria stood out as a major contributor and is among countries for the anticipated increase for the next 20 years.
“This calls for a re-think on the best and smart investments to undertake that will transform our numbers from quantity into quality for a peaceful and prosperous nation and indeed the African continent,” he said.
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