The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to sustainable and inclusive family planning as part of efforts to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Nigeria.
The commitment was restated on Thursday in Abuja at the close-out ceremony of the Inclusive Family Planning (IFPLAN) project, a five-year initiative aimed at improving access to family planning services for persons with disabilities while strengthening healthcare providers and disability organisations to support an inclusive health system.
Over its implementation period, the IFPLAN project recorded significant milestones, reaching 1,912 persons with disabilities in 18 communities through social and behaviour-change interventions. Family planning information was disseminated to 544,759 persons with disabilities via radio, digital platforms, and community engagement, while stigma-reduction messages reached 3,002,265 persons without disabilities. The project also conducted accessibility audits in 24 health facilities, supported 23 facilities with accessibility upgrades, and trained 1,500 healthcare providers, among other achievements.
The Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr. Salma Ibrahim-Anas, described IFPLAN as a model for disability inclusion and a key contributor to the Federal Government’s Renewed Health Agenda. Represented by Dr. Fatima Jibrilla, she commended the project partners for demonstrating the impact of inclusive development.
“The main achievement of the IFPLAN project is not just a technical milestone; it is proof of inclusive development and a clear example of what is possible when no one is left behind,” she said. “Our goal is to ensure that every Nigerian, regardless of socioeconomic status, geographic location, or physical ability, has equal access to healthcare services.”
Dr. Ibrahim-Anas emphasised that family planning is a critical pillar of national public health strategy, particularly in advancing the health of women and girls and driving national development. She noted the need to dismantle physical, attitudinal, and communication barriers that hinder persons with disabilities from accessing essential health services, adding that lessons from Kaduna State demonstrate how targeted training and accessible information can close existing gaps.
She further urged that sustainability plans go beyond documentation and guide a long-term government transition to scale inclusive family planning nationwide.
Also speaking, the Country Director of Sightsavers Nigeria, Prof. Joy Shuaibu, said the IFPLAN project had proven that intentional inclusion delivers measurable impact for women and girls with disabilities. She highlighted the empowerment of healthcare workers as one of the project’s most sustainable outcomes.
“When you empower healthcare providers with the right knowledge, it stays with them forever. We focused on ensuring they are confident and competent in providing services to persons with disabilities,” she said.
Prof. Shuaibu stressed the importance of institutionalising disability inclusion within health policies and ensuring the active participation of persons with disabilities in shaping future programmes. She reaffirmed Sightsavers’ readiness to provide technical support to advance inclusive sexual and reproductive healthcare across the country.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, Mohammed Isa, described IFPLAN as a transformational intervention that expanded reproductive health access for women and girls with disabilities, particularly in Kaduna State. Represented by the Director of Media and Communications, Lanre Oloyede, Isa called for stronger government coordination in future disability-focused projects and reaffirmed the Federal Government’s willingness to collaborate with development partners to scale inclusive family planning initiatives nationwide.
“Together, we must continue to push for a Nigeria where no woman, no girl, and no person with a disability is denied the right to make informed choices about their body and future,” he said.
In her remarks, the Commissioner of Health in Kaduna State, Umma Ahmed, said the project had delivered tangible progress and renewed hope for many families by ensuring equitable access to family planning services for persons with disabilities.
She commended Governor Sani Uba for his commitment to inclusive governance and people-centred development, noting that Kaduna State has prioritised health reforms, expanded primary healthcare access, and sustained increased budgetary allocations to the health sector.
“For us, this is not a close-out. Provision has been made in the 2026 budget with a dedicated budget line for this project,” Ahmed said. “This reflects our resolve to sustain disability inclusion, strengthen family planning initiatives, reduce maternal mortality, and ensure that no citizen is left behind.”
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