The Katsina State Government says it is strengthening family planning services and access to contraceptive commodities to reduce maternal and child mortality in the state. The State Commissioner for Health, Mr Musa Adamu-Funtua, disclosed this on Monday at a press briefing in Katsina to commemorate World Family Planning Day. Adamu-Funtua said the government recognised family planning as a key component of maternal and child health, nutrition and overall family wellbeing. He said the 2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) indicated that modern contraceptive prevalence among married women in the state stood at about 6.7 per cent. The commissioner added…
Author: Newsdesk
The Headfort Foundation for Justice on Monday unveiled ‘Unleash Hack 2026’, an initiative aimed at promoting innovative, community-driven solutions to security and safety challenges. The programme, themed ‘Innovating for Accountable Communities’, is organised in partnership with Civic Hive and Unleash. Speaking at the event, Miss Oluwakemi Adenekan, Programmes Manager of the Headfort Foundation for Justice, said the initiative would engage young people in developing practical solutions. She said the solutions would address gaps in community security, crime reporting and access to timely intervention by law-enforcement agencies. Adenekan said the initiative was inspired by the foundation’s work on access to justice…
Vice President Kashim Shettima says Nigeria will support a candidate for the position of United Nations Secretary-General who believes in Africa’s aspirations in global affairs. A statement issued by the spokesman of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, said Shettima made the remark when he met the Costa Rican candidate for the position, Rebeca Grynspan, in New York. Shettima said Nigeria would stand for equity, justice and fairness in its support for any candidate seeking the position of UN Secretary-General. “Nigeria will also support a candidate who believes in Africa’s aspirations in global affairs, specifically securing positions in key decision-making bodies…
The Kano State Government has begun an immunisation campaign against diphtheria in five local government areas across the state. This is contained in a statement issued on Monday by Rukayya Suleiman, the state Risk Communication and Community Engagement Officer. The exercise is being coordinated by the Kano State Centre for Disease Control (KNCDC). According to Suleiman, the campaign covers Dala, Fagge, Gwale, Kumbotso and Ungogo Local Government Areas. She urged residents, particularly those with unknown immunisation status, to present themselves for vaccination. She also encouraged people whose last diphtheria vaccination was administered more than 10 years ago to receive another…
The Nigerian Cardiac Society (NCS) has raised concern over the growing exposure of young Nigerians to cardiovascular diseases, linking the trend partly to sedentary lifestyles, unhealthy diets and reduced physical activity. President of the NCS, Prof. Rasaaq Adebayo, said this on Monday in Abuja at the 2026 World Heart Day celebration, themed “Don’t Miss a Beat,” organised in collaboration with the World Heart Federation. Adebayo said heart diseases, including hypertension, could remain unnoticed for a long time, making regular health checks and early prevention important even for people who appear healthy. He urged Nigerians, particularly young people, to adopt heart-healthy…
The Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) has empowered 400 smallholder farmers in Edo State through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Livelihood Project, in conjunction with Okomu Oil Palm Company Plc (OOPC). Mr Misan Sillo, Economic Development Manager of PIND, disclosed this at a Green Field Day organised for farmers in Udo and 16 other communities around Okomu Oil Palm Company under the PIND/OOPC CSR Livelihood Project. He said the initiative aimed to improve agricultural productivity, strengthen livelihoods and create sustainable economic opportunities for farmers and communities in the state. Sillo, represented by the Senior Adviser of…
As Nigeria marks its 66th Independence Anniversary, the Young Innovators of Nigeria (YIN) has called for a shift from a job-seeking economy to one in which young people scale up homegrown solutions. The Chief Executive Officer of YIN, Joy Buba, made the call in an interview with reporters on Monday in Abuja. Buba said Nigeria’s 66th anniversary should go beyond celebrating past achievements to interrogating the kind of future being built for the next generation. She noted that since Nigeria became independent in 1960, the country had recorded significant achievements in institution building, education, infrastructure, the technology ecosystem and democratic…
The Director-General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr Kelechi Ohiri, says Nigeria must take charge of its health financing research agenda to sustain reforms, strengthen evidence-based policymaking and improve health outcomes nationwide. Ohiri made the call at the inaugural Nigeria Health Financing Research and Learning Forum in Abuja, themed “Evidence and Learning for Nigeria’s Health Financing Future: Building a Locally Led Research and Learning Ecosystem.” He said the forum was designed to leverage evidence to advance Nigeria’s health financing agenda, address the limitations of episodic research and strengthen institutional capacity for continuous learning and reform. “For too long,…
The Lagos State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs Cecilia-Dada Bolaji, has urged market women, SMEs, young adults and artisans to leverage digital marketing for business growth. According to a statement issued by the ministry, Bolaji gave the advice on Monday at a digital marketing training for market women and men, SMEs, young adults and artisans in Agege. The training, themed “From Local Business to Global Market: Leveraging Digital Marketing for Business Growth,” is being held from September 28 to 30. Bolaji said technology had expanded the marketplace, enabling a market woman in Oshodi to receive orders from…
Confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have exceeded 8,000, with the World Health Organization (WHO) warning that the outbreak remains extensive and continues to spread geographically. The latest government situation report released on Monday said the country had recorded 8,067 confirmed cases as of Saturday, including 3,901 deaths. It said 2,070 patients had recovered, while the case fatality rate stood at 48.4 per cent. In its latest disease outbreak news published on Friday, the WHO said daily new cases remained high, although the intensity of transmission varied significantly across affected provinces and health zones. “The…