Sightsavers, in collaboration with the Kaduna State Government, has trained 15,000 health service providers across the state, enhancing their knowledge and confidence in delivering disability-inclusive healthcare.
Sightsavers’ Programme Director for Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), Anita Gwom, disclosed this during the closeout ceremony of the five-year Inclusive Family Planning (IFPLAN) Project in Kaduna.
She said the project had reached more than 1,900 persons with disabilities through community-level interventions and provided family planning information to over 544,000 people with disabilities.
Gwom added that stigma reduction messages, delivered through radio and digital campaigns, reached more than three million people without disabilities across the state.
As part of efforts to strengthen health systems, she said accessibility audits were conducted in 24 health facilities, followed by renovations in 23 of them to improve inclusiveness.
According to her, one of the project’s most significant achievements was policy transformation. She noted that the state had domesticated the national Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights policy for persons with disabilities and adopted a costed implementation plan valued at $22 million.
She added that Disability Desk Officers were deployed across all 24 local government health authorities and in 23 project-supported facilities, while eight persons with disabilities now sit on health committees.
Gwom urged government actors, civil society organizations and communities to sustain investments in disability-inclusive health systems and ensure persons with disabilities remain central to decision-making.
“Inclusion isn’t a project that simply ends. It is justice, it is equity, and it is the future we must all stand behind,” she said.
Speaking at the event, the Commissioner for Health, Umma Ahmed, reaffirmed the commitment of Gov. Uba Sani’s administration to promoting inclusive health services, mobilizing resources and advocating for the nationwide adoption of disability-inclusive healthcare approaches.
She explained that the project’s closeout signaled a greater responsibility for the state to sustain and scale the gains recorded, emphasizing the need to institutionalize the lessons across the entire health system.
“Our vision is to build a health system where inclusive is not a project but a culture — not a pilot, but a statewide and national standard,” she said.
The commissioner commended Sightsavers International for its leadership, technical expertise and commitment, noting that the partnership demonstrated how government, communities and development actors could work together to achieve lasting change.
She also appreciated healthcare workers, community leaders, advocates and persons with disabilities whose contributions shaped the programme.
Meanwhile, some beneficiaries of the project commended Sightsavers, saying they now access family planning services without stress.
Asiya Umar recalled how persons with disabilities previously faced stigma from healthcare personnel, noting that the IFPLAN project had significantly improved their experience.
It was reported that the project, funded by UK Aid and led by Sightsavers, was implemented in collaboration with BBC Media Action, the Kaduna State Government, the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD), PENDA and the Network of Women with Disabilities.
