A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), The Breakthrough Action Nigeria, has urged communities in Plateau to take ownership of its malaria and tuberculosis programmes in the state.
Dr Temitope Ogunbi, a senior Programme officer for Malaria with the Breakthrough Action Nigeria, made the call on Tuesday in Jos during an Advocacy Communication and Social Mobilisation (ACSM) / Technical Working Group (TWG) meeting.
Ogunbi said that it was pertinent for communities to own the programme as it would enhance its sustainability and also help to reduce to the barest minimum, the cases of malaria and tuberculosis in the state.
He further said that the agenda of the ACSM group was to serve as the technical think tank and to provide the needed advisory function and support.
He said that the ACSM cut across all of its health programmes objectives by ensuring the promotion of the desired change or positive behaviour for the prevention and control of malaria and tuberculosis at all levels.
The programme officer said that the core objective of the ACSM was to serve as a forum for discussion and sharing of lessons learnt and the best practices on the most effective and appropriate social behavioural change practices strategies.
Similarly, the chairperson of the ASCM Plateau group, the Sarkin Kanam, Mu’azu Muhammadu , said when people, especially those in the rural areas saw programmes initiated as their own, they would become so committed to the success of the programmes.
Muhammadu urged governments at all levels to take ownership of donor-driven health projects by showing commitment to those projects, which he said would enhance sustainability of those projects even after the donors had left.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Breakthrough Action Nigeria is a Non Governmental Organisation(NGO) which commenced operations in Nigeria in 2018 to increase the practice of individual health behaviours in nutrition, family planning, malaria, tuberculosis and other health behaviours.
NAN reports that Breakthrough Action Nigeria is currently in 11 states of Nigeria with different health programmes in those states.(NAN)
