Gates Health Intervention Launched in Bauchi State

By Bashir Hassan Abubakar

Family planning services as an important  healthcare component will soon receive a boost in Bauchi State, with the launching of a new health intervention in the State.

The intervention known as IntegratE 2.0 Project is a Bill and Melinda Gate funded intervention that is going to be implemented by a six_member consortium led by Society for Family.

North East Regional Manager of IntegratE 2.0 Project John Ekele, while speaking at an inception meeting held on Thursday 27th April, 2023 at Chartwell Hotel Bauchi, said the project is to work with 400 proprietary patent medicines vendors (PPMVs) and 20 Community Pharmacies (CPs) to integrate family planning uptake and expansion of other primary health care services in Bauchi State .

Ekele said the objective of meeting was to introduce IntegratE 2.0 project to the state and facilitate the collaborative selection of local government areas in Bauchi state where the project will be implemented.

Mr. Ekele, during the project launch

He pointed that the project will seek to advance the quality of family planning services as provided by community pharmacies and proprietary patent medicines vendors.

The Regional manager said the project with a live span of 5years, was first piloted in other states from 2017 to 2021 and that the success recorded in the pilot states gave reasons for its scale up to the North East which made Bauchi to be a beneficiary State.

He added that the project will use three strategies that include, creating a enabling environment through policy formulation, strengthen service delivery, research and monitoring and evaluation.

He also disclosed that the project  will train and work with 400 proprietary patent medicines vendors ( PPMVs) and 20 Community Pharmacies in Bauchi State.

According to Ekele, the other primary Health Care Services expansion will cover malaria, pneumonia, diarrhoea and malnutrition.

Also speaking, the Bauchi State Technical Advisor of the project, Umar Abdulrazak said the inception meeting is to introduce IntegratE 2.0 to the state and facilitate the collaborative selection of Local government areas where the project will be implemented.

He said the project will pilot new approaches to promote the integration of family planning and PHC services into Community Pharmacies and proprietary patent medicines vendors.

Bauchi State Commissioner of health Dr.Sabiu Abdu Gwalabe, represented by an official of the ministry, assured of government’s commitment to provide the enabling environment for the successful implementation of project.

Our correspondent reports that the project will be implemented in ten local government areas of Bauchi State.

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