The Faith and Cultural Champions (FCC) project has equipped couples in six Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Kaduna State with communication skills to promote open dialogue and joint decision-making.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the community dialogue and confidence-building session is being organized by the Ummulkhairi Foundation under FCC Project in Panbeguwa town, Kubau LGA.
The programme brought together couples, traditional rulers, religious leaders, health workers and transport union representatives to strengthen communication between husbands and wives, address fears of criticism and promote informed decisions on pregnancy, childbirth, birth spacing and emergency transport planning.
Speaking at the event on Thursday, the Founder, Ummulkhairi Foundation, Hajiya Maryam Sani, said the initiative sought to encourage pregnant women to register early for antenatal care, deliver in health facilities and receive postnatal care.
She said regular hospital visits enabled health workers to detect complications early and provide timely interventions for the safety of mothers and their babies.
Sani appealed to traditional rulers, commercial motorcycle operators and other transport providers to support pregnant women by ensuring prompt transportation to health facilities during emergencies.
She said community collaboration would help reduce delays in accessing skilled healthcare and ultimately save lives.
Also speaking, the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Assistant for Kubau LGA, Muhammad Murtala, described the FCC initiative as a pilot learning project being implemented for the first time in Nigeria.
He said the project was currently being implemented in six LGAs selected across Kaduna State’s three senatorial districts to test community-based approaches to improving maternal and newborn health before possible statewide expansion.
According to him, the selected LGAs include Kubau and Zaria in Kaduna North Senatorial District, Jama’a and Kagarko in Kaduna South Senatorial District, and Birnin Gwari and Chikun in Kaduna Central Senatorial District.
Murtala said the project initially recorded low attendance, particularly among men, as many community members expected financial incentives or were occupied with farming and business activities.
He, however, said sustained engagement with traditional and religious leaders had significantly improved participation and increased male involvement in the dialogue sessions.
The M&E assistant said that although encouraging participants to seek healthcare at hospitals remained a challenge, the project was already yielding positive results.
He cited a health facility that recorded an increase in antenatal care attendance from 50 pregnant women in May to 75 in June, attributing the improvement to sustained community mobilization and awareness campaigns under the FCC Project.
He expressed confidence that lessons from the pilot phase would support the expansion of the initiative to other parts of Kaduna State.
Also, the Social Mobilization Officer, Ummulkhairi Foundation, Safiya Nuhu, urged residents of the six participating LGAs to patronize hospitals for antenatal care and childbirth instead of relying on chemists or patent medicine stores during delivery.
She stressed the importance of routine screening for HIV, hepatitis and other health conditions during pregnancy, saying early diagnosis and treatment could prevent mother-to-child transmission of infections and improve pregnancy outcomes.
According to her, deliveries should be handled by skilled birth attendants in recognized health facilities to reduce maternal and newborn complications.
In his remarks, the District Head of Panbeguwa, Alhaji Safiyanu Shehu, commended the foundation and its partners for bringing the programme to the community.
He described the initiative as timely, saying it would strengthen understanding among couples, promote peaceful homes and encourage greater utilization of healthcare services.
The traditional ruler urged residents to support the programme by ensuring pregnant women attended antenatal care, delivered in health facilities and sought medical attention promptly whenever complications arose.
He also called on Muslims, Christians, traditional institutions and community stakeholders to continue working together to promote peace, unity and the wellbeing of families.
Also speaking, a Community Extension Worker, Hajara Abubakar, said effective communication between husbands and wives remained critical to building peaceful homes and improving health-seeking behavior.
She said both Islam and Christianity encouraged love, mutual respect and kindness in marriage, urging couples to discuss family health matters openly, overcome fears of criticism and make decisions together.
According to her, strong families are the foundation of peaceful and healthy communities.
Participants at the dialogue said the sessions had improved their confidence to discuss maternal and family health issues openly with their spouses, prepare for emergencies and support one another in making informed healthcare decisions.
The FCC project is designed to strengthen family communication, promote skilled birth attendance and improve maternal and newborn health outcomes through community engagement, faith-based advocacy and collaboration with traditional and religious leaders across the six participating LGAs.(www.nannews.ng)(NAN).
