Child spacing has been identified as panacea for reducing maternal and child mortality.
The Senior Program Advisor Pathfinder International Dr. Sakina Aminu Bello stated this during a Budget tracking and capacity building on child spacing to 30 stakeholders from government, media and civil society organization from Gombe state, organised by the Pathfinder International in collaboration with SAIF Advocacy Foundation Gombe, in Bauchi on Thursday.
Speaking during the training the, Chairman of the Gombe state Advocacy Working Group on Family Planning, Mallam Alhassan Yaya Abdullahi said the percentage of women subscribe to child spacing commodities now is encouraging with an increase of about 40 percent of women in the state accepting child spacing services.
He also called on religious leaders to intensify campaign on child spacing.
“Preach the gospel of child spacing to your followers because people respect the words of religious leaders,” he said.
On her part, the Advance Family Planning Intern of Pathfinder International, Hauwa Usman, said the objective of the training is to orient participants on Gombe state budgeting process, advocacy entry points and to build the capacity of state local actors on child spacing.
She said the training would also build the capacity of participant to undertaking child spacing budget tracking and how to use data around child spacing budget performance scorecards.
Also speaking the state permanent Secretary Ministry of Finance Alhaji Jalo Ali said Gombe state has a transparent budget process because government directed all its ministry, department and agencies to incorporate all stakeholder including civil society organisations in the budget processes of the state.
“Participation of civil society organisations in the budget process in Gombe state is helping the state government to do the needful to the people of the state.