The GFF is an innovative financing model targeted at Low and Medium Income Countries, it gives countries the unique opportunity to transform how they prioritize and finance the health and nutrition of their people especially women, children and adolescents.
E4A-MamaYe recognizes the need for Civil Society to effectively participate in the implementation of the Nigeria Reproductive Maternal Newborn Children and Adolescent Health and Nutrition Investment Case (RMNCAH +N IC) for the GFF. That is why we took the lead in organizing a one day brainstorming session with key CSOs to identify their strategic roles and actions in domesticating RMNCAH+N in Nigeria.
But what is the RMNCAH+N Investment Case and why is it so important?
EXPLORING THE OPPORTUNITIES OF THE NIGERIA RMNCAH+N INVESTMENT CASE
The Nigeria RMNCAH +N IC was approved by the Federal Government in 2018. It provides a detailed approach to the funding gap on RMNCAH +N through cost effective, high impact interventions that aim to produce results in the shortest possible time.
While the Investment Case is a requirement to access funding from the GFF, its main function is to strategically support the harnessing of public, domestic and private resources targeted at improving primary health care delivery, strengthening RMNCAH+N and achieving Universal Health Coverage.
During the one-day brainstorming session, CSOs actively identified possible areas of engagement and influence including: assessment of community specific needs for advocacy; the development of scorecards to track performance of services; the use of creative arts and media platforms to communicate minimum health packages and benefits to community members, especially those at rural level.
It is hoped that these engagement ideas and strategies will help partners align their 2019 work plans to support the government of Nigeria to effectively implement the RMNCAH+N Investment Case. Dr Francis Ohanyido, West Africa Academy of Public Health (WAAPH), said:
although this meeting is belated, it is indeed a welcome development as CSOs now understand better the activities they can carry out to support the government to achieve the results proposed in the Investment Case.
A BRAINSTORMING TO UNDERSTAND THE COUNTRY’S NEEDS
Participants at the meeting examined each of the five priority interventions and investment phases of the Investment Case, including geographic location and timeframe. By having a clear understanding of what each of the priority intervention phases entails, participants were able to come up with innovative ideas on what roles they could play.
Dr. Lola Mabogunje of Integrated Health Partnership (IHP), a USAID funded project, also praised E4A-MamaYe for taking leadership in organizing such a meeting.
No time was too late to get involved in supporting the government in achieving Universal Health Care through strengthened Primary Health Care.
She advised that Partners reconvene periodically to evaluate activities carried out at the sub-national level with CSOs and Community Based Organizations.
A quick mapping exercise was also carried out to identify CSOs presence across the States. Where Partners presence overlapped, commitments were made to support collective implementation of activities at sub- national levels.
E4A-MamaYe is continuously supporting CSOs in unpacking key issues linked to GFF funding allocation and disbursement in different countries (read more about our work in Kenya and Tanzania). We will continue to support Nigeria civil society to develop tools and strategies for engaging at different stages of GFF implementation.