Friday 19 February 2016

2016 Budget: PACFaH Calls for Timely Release, Increased Funding, Others

A coalition of health-related non governmental organisations known as Partnership Advocacy in Child and Family Health, PACFaH, has advocated for mobilisation, increased funding, timely release, and efficient utilisation of resources in the 2016 health budget.

It stressed the need for child and family health generally and specifically nutrition, family planning, routine immunisation and childhood killer diseases.


This was stated in a communique after the the group arose from a meeting which was chaired by Dr. Ben Anyene, Chairman, Board of Trustees HERFON, and facilitated by Pharm. Remi Adeseun, Program Director of the PSN-PACFaH Project.


The meeting which had in attendance, ‎73 national members of civil society groups prioritizing value for money in line with items in the 2016 budget to advance Child and Family Health in Nigeria said the federal government must take the implementation of the national health Act more seriously.


"FGN should take immediate steps to ensure full implementation of the provisions of the National Health Act 2014, it must insist on full use of the new zero-based budgeting framework and template by all MDAs and especially the FMoH in subsequent budgets.


"The FGN should establish a platform for health financing interface between Federal, State, and Local Governments to increase synergy and reduce duplication and wastages; more funding options should be explored to ensure sustainable health financing for better health outcomes."


It advised government to be open in the budget process for more transparency responsiveness and accountability and should develop a framework for participation of CSOs and professional associations in all budgeting process; from conception to design and implementation.

Source: Daily Trust

Wednesday 17 February 2016

COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF A ONE-DAY MEETING OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS/PROFESSIONAL HEALTH ASSOCIATIONS/PRIVATE SECTOR ON THE 2016 BUDGET OF THE FEDERAL MINISTRY OF HEALTH


ONE-DAY HEALTH-FOCUSED CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS (CSOs) MEETING ON 2016 BUDGET, HELD ON THE 16TH FEBRUARY 2016 AT THE TAMARIND 1 HALL OF THE SHERATON HOTEL AND TOWERS ABUJA, NIGERIA.

 

  1. A One-day meeting of health-focused CSOs in Nigeria was convened by the Partnership for Advocacy in Child and Family Health (PACFaH), a coalition of 8 CSOs:
    • development Research and Project Center (dRPC)
    • Association for the Advancement of Family Planning (AAFP)
    • Civil Society for Legislative Advocacy (CISLAC)
    • Civil Society Scaling Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN)
    • Community Health Research Initiative (CHR)
    • Federation of Women Muslim Associations (FOMWAN)
    • Health Reform Foundation of Nigeria (HERFON) and
    • Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN)
       
      The PACFaH coalition advocates for mobilization, increased funding, timely release, and efficient utilization of resources Child and Family health generally and specifically Nutrition, Family Planning, Routine Immunization and Childhood Killer Diseases.
      The following Professional Associations were also represented at the convening:

  • Nigerian Medical Association (NMA)
  • Federation of African Nutrition Societies (FANS)
  • Nutrition Society of Nigeria (NSN)
  • Dietitians Association of Nigeria (DAN)
  • International Confederation of Dietetic Associations (ICDA) and
  • Association of Women Nutritionists in Nigeria (AWNN)
     

  1. The objectives of the meeting were:

  • Facilitating CSOs/Professional Associations’ discussions on the implications of the Federal Ministry of Health’s (FMoH) budget withdrawal action

    • Identifying key omissions especially those with National and International Public Health financing obligations
    • Prioritizing value for money line items in the 2016 budget to advance Child and Family Health in Nigeria
    • Proposing strategies to strengthen the health budgeting process around principles of stakeholder inclusiveness, transparency, cost effectiveness, prioritization of needs and high technical standards
    • Documenting CSOs commitment and concerns for effective and transparent budget process in a communiqué
       

  1. The meeting was Chaired by Dr. Ben Anyene, Chairman Board of Trustees HERFON, and facilitated by Pharm. Remi Adeseun, Program Director of the PSN-PACFaH Project. The meeting was attended by 73 leaders of key National CSOs, Professional Associations, Development Partners, PACFaH Partners and Media Organizations.
  2. The lead technical presentation was written by Professor Obinna Onwujekwe, a renowned Health Finance and Management Expert and Professor of Health Administration and Management. The paper was titled “Key Issues in Child and Family Health/ Resource Mobilization and Universal Health Coverage: the way forward”.
    The presentation highlighted key issues in health financing, discussed current health financing challenges in Nigeria and made recommendations for mobilising efficient and sustainable resources for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Nigeria.
  3. Group work covering 5 key issues were carried out by participants. The 5 groups brainstormed on the following issues:         
    • Prospects and opportunities for domestic mobilizing for health financing of the 2016 budget;
    • FGoN compliance with inherited and new international obligations in the health sector- benefits and challenges;
    • Advocating for adequate funding in the context of the deficit financing- the best arguments for the health sector advocate;
    • Institutionalizing a voice for the media, CSOs & Professional Associations in future health budgets. The way forward;
    • Tracking timely releases, value for money and cost effectiveness of the health budget after releases-most effective strategies;
       
  4. The meeting observed the following:
    • Health financing is challenged by dwindling revenue, poor fiscal management of resources and limited private sector financing;
    • The 2016 health sector budget of the FGN is characterized by lack of transparency, responsiveness and misplacement of priorities;
    • The framework and guidelines for implementation of the National Health Act 2014 are yet to be put in place;
    • Non-recognition of the provisions of the 2014 National Health Act in the 2016 budget proposal;
    • Absence of budgetary provisions for key and essential line items for Child and Family Health;
    • Service wide votes have not been disaggregated for many line items in the 2016 FMoH budget. Example is the bulk allocation for the SDGs;
    • Lack of inclusiveness of non-actors in the budgeting process.
       
  5. The meeting made the following recommendations:
    • That the FGN should take immediate steps to ensure full implementation of the provisions of the National Health Act 2014;
    • The FGN must insist on full use of the new zero-based budgeting framework and template by all MDAs and especially the FMoH in subsequent budgets;
    • The FGN should establish a platform for health financing interface between Federal, State, and Local Governments to increase synergy and reduce duplication and wastages;
    • That more funding options should be explored to ensure sustainable health financing for better health outcomes;
    • The meeting calls on the National Assembly to strengthen its oversight roles and functions to ensure more transparency and accountability in the budget process;
    • The meeting urges Government to ensure that it keeps all its commitments and obligations on health financing including those made Nationally and Internationally (bilateral and multilateral);
    • The FMoH should work for improvement in targeted capital expenditure in the health sector budget;
    • Government should put in place a plan and framework for a graduated increase in funding to reach the FGN’s commitment of 15% of annual budget for health in line with the Abuja 2001 declaration;
    • Government must open up the budget process for more transparency responsiveness and accountability;
    • Government should develop a framework for participation of CSOs and Professional Associations in all budgeting process; from conception to design and implementation;
    • CSOs should as a priority, establish a strong coalition for budget advocacy, tracking and accountability.

Monday 8 February 2016

Growing revenue leakages and dilapidating health budget

Abubakar Jimoh
The Civil Society Legislation Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)’s attention has been drawn to the persistent nation’s revenue leakages and sharp cut in the 2016 budgetary allocation to health sector, despite the rising challenges confronting child and family health in the country.
A recent report by Tax Justice and Governance Network (TJ&GN) reveals that revenue leakage arising from corporate tax incentives granted multinational companies after the end of initial five-year tax break has cost Nigeria billions of dollars, disclosing Nigeria lost over US$20 billion to tax fraud evolving from incentives between 2010 and 2014.
The corporate tax incentives in the analysis of Tax Justice Network Africa, include reduction in corporate income tax, rates and tax ‘holidays’ offered by governments to investors for specified periods, to attract new foreign direct investment by companies operating in special economic zones.
In a recent published comparative report by ActionAid on tax incentives granted over the years by four African countries—Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, Nigeria recorded the biggest loss of about $2.9 billion (N577 billion) to tax waivers annually. The loss according to the report is more than the Federal Government’s annual budget to the health sector.
The report further stated that the tax holiday extension meant the loss of about $2 billion in revenue, and the rolled over allowances where the same tax was effectively foregone twice, a further $1.3 billion, adding that tax foregone in the first five years was not counted, as this was the normal tax break.
It would be recalled that in 2014, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) had raised alarm over the incessant loss of the nation’s revenue to tax waivers. It was on this observation that Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) reported that between 2011 and 2013, import waivers granted various individuals and groups by the Ministry of Finance cost the Federal Government N1.4 trillion.
CISLAC finds it worrisome that despite persistent decrease in nation’s revenue from the oil and gas sector, the government has remained adamant to innovatively embrace alternative sources of funding by blocking identified massive revenue leakages and redirect revenue therefrom to support important sector like health.
Meanwhile, in 2013, a study conducted by CISLAC gathered that in Nigeria, one in 13 women dies during pregnancy or childbirth, and 12% of children die before reaching the age of five. The study observed that every 10 minutes one woman dies from conditions associated with childbirth; and only 39% births take place with assistance of medically trained personnel, coupled with the scarcity of skilled attendants, absence of personnel, among other factors impeding the effectiveness of health services in the country. The identified factors are largely attributed to poor budgetary allocation to health sector.
Similarly, the Association for the Advancement of Family Planning (AAFP) has confirmed that Child Spacing has direct impacts on the health of the family and grossly the economy of a nation as a whole with tendency to mitigate maternal and child deaths in the country. Yet, budgetary allocation to Child Spacing in the contexts of Nigeria Family Planning Blueprint and the Costed Implementation Plans is an endemic challenge.
Also, the recent announcement by the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring Nigeria free from the longtime dreadful polio endemic may soon resurge in the absence of provision of adequate finances by the government to sustain intervention on Routine Immunization in the country. Consequently, as the Nation Assembly deliberates on 2016 Appropriation Bill, there are serious public outcries by various stakeholders advocating for effective child and family health in Nigeria such as Community Health Research Initiative (CHR) agitating for adequate finances for immunization to ensure sustainability and avert future resurgence of polio virus.
With over 11 million stunted children, Nigeria is without doubt confronted with the daunting challenge of malnutrition and ranks second with highest number of stunted children globally. Civil Society Scaling-up Nutrition (CS-SUNN) has reported that malnutrition contributes to nearly half of all child deaths globally, amounting to more than 3 million children each year. The country continues to face malnutrition challenges as a result of inadequate budgetary allocation to nutrition line items.
Pneumonia and diarrheal diseases remain the major killers of children, with no fewer than 2.1 million Under-5 years and neonatal deaths occurring in Nigeria in 2014. As stated by the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN). The country signed into 15 essential commodities in the United Nations Commission on Life-Saving Commodities (UNCoLSC) recommendations, among which three are itemized for the survival of the Under-5 death. The recommended commodities for the survival of the Under-5 include: Amoxicillin antibiotic in dispersible tablet form (amoxicillin DT) as first line treatment in the management of childhood killer pneumonia disease; and Zinc and Oral Rehydration Salt Solution (Zn/ORS) both for the treatment of childhood diarrheal disease. However, efforts to tackling childhood killer diseases have been impaired by lack of specific budget line for the quantification and procurement of the recommended commodities at all levels.  

Monday 1 February 2016

National Mirror lauds members of PACFaH for unique synergy


By Abubakar Jimoh

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Chioma Kanu, Prgram Manager, CISLAC (3rd from right) presenting advocacy materials to the Health Editor, National Mirrow (2nd from left) during visit to the media outfit in Lagos.

 

The Editorial Board of the National Mirror Newspaper has commended members of Partnership for Advocacy in Child and Family Health (PACFaH) for their unique synergy and enthusiasm pushing for common goal for the betterment of Nigerian women and children under the aegis of an innovative coalition consists of indigenous civil society with related thematic areas.

The Board led by the Group Editor, Business, Mr. Tola Akinmutimi said this while receiving members of the coalition during an advocacy visit to the media outfit in Lagos on Wednesday.

Addressing members of the coalition, he expressed happiness with the coalition as a group advocating for fund mobilization for effective child and family health in Nigeria, stating that the outfit would provide PACFaH with maximum support in its advocacy on child and family health.

Also, the Health Editor, National Mirror, Mr. Sam Eferano added that “nothing stops child and family health issues from being in from front and back page of the newspaper provided such meet production standards.”

He charged members of the coalition to explore innovative mechanism and advise Nierian Government on alternative fund mobilization for child and family health in the face of the ongoing dwindling nation’s revenue.  

Eferaro promised committed and devoted attention towards PACFaH thematic areas in the media reportage on health, stressing that PACFaH will be provided with a weekly column to persistently discuss and amplify its issues; and supported with regular editorial page to influence desired change in child and family health.

Other editors present during the visit include: Political Editor, Art Editor, and News Editor.