Adopt FP to drive economic prosperity – Expert

Adopt FP to drive economic prosperity – Expert
[Photo caption] Some methods of Family Planning (NAN)
NAN-HG-4
Planning
By Lucy Osuizigbo
Lagos, Feb. 19, 2018 (NAN) A medical practitioner, Dr Olatunde Afolayan, says making Family Planning (FP) a social norm in the country will boost the economy and discourage Nigerians from migrating to foreign countries in search for better life.
Afolayan said this at an FP Sensitisation Programme organised by Sparkle Foundation and Agents of Change in collaboration with the Nigerian Urban Reproductive Health Initiative (NURHI), at Makoko community in Lagos.
He said multiple births or lack of birth control contributed to the high rate of poverty, lack of infrastructure and economic challenges fuelling the citizens’ desire to travel abroad legally and illegally in search of economic prosperity.
According to him, planning the economic development and growth of the nation starts with planning the family.
“Family planning should become a ‘must’ in Nigeria of the 21st century because we cannot continue to give birth in an unplanned manner.
“Having multiple children in unplanned manners can be very overwhelming because you cannot cater for them adequately and this is why poverty, hunger, unemployment, maternal and child mortality are on the increase.
“Multiple births can also disrupt government plans, with the country’s economy and infrastructure struggling to cope with volatile population growth.
“A population growth that is not properly managed will in most cases, give rise to mass unemployment and mass migration to cities like in the case of Libya,’’ he said.
Afolayan noted that developed countries plan and turn around their economies positively through FP.
“We need to adopt family planning so that our society and country can be like the `White man’s’ country; the land that we envy so much.
“The beginning of their development was through birth control, which is why they are able to plan their family, society and their countries.
“Their families made so much sacrifice by adopting FP to make families and the government planned for their population; they can even project and plan for their economy in the next five years.
“If we can adopt family planning or child spacing, the government will be able to plan and cater for the citizens, even better than the developed countries because we are endowed with resources,’’ Afolayan said.
While demonstrating the application of the different methods of FP, Dr Adeola Duduyemi of NURHI said that the essence of their activities was to ensure that every pregnancy was by choice and not by chance.
“We want to ensure that every pregnancy is safe; the campaign on the importance of family planning is aimed at reducing the high rate of maternal, infant and child mortality in Lagos State and in Nigeria.
“Family Planning is beneficial to mother, children, father, the family and entire society.
“Spacing a child through family planning methods helps the mother to regain her health after delivery; it also gives the woman the opportunity to love and give attention to her husband and children.
“Family planning is also an important intervention strategy to avert maternal, infant and child deaths.
“It reduces maternal mortality by reducing the number of unintended pregnancies, the number of abortions and the proportion of high risk births,’’ she said.
Also speaking, Mrs Olasumbo Ojuroye, Founder, Sparkle Foundation, said the organisation saw the need to sensitise masses on the need for FP in order to improve the health and living conditions of the citizens.
Ojuroye said the campaign was brought to Makoko community because it was a suburb and a deprived area of the state with little or no access to adequate information.
“We are here for women whose next pregnancy is a threat; we are here for that unknown family that is struggling to breakout from generation circle of poverty.
“We are here to contribute our own quota to building the economy and also create a better future for upcoming generation through family planning.
“This campaign is to increase awareness, to make family planning become a social norm in our community, where everybody is free to talk about FP publicly,’’ Ojuroye said.
Mr Omiyale Kayode, Chairman, Yaba Local Council Development Area, appealed to residents to embrace FP so as to improve their quality of life and secure their future. (NAN)
LCO/VIV/MST
Editing by Vivian Ihechu/Muhammad Suleiman Tola