Yobe Border Communities Get New Healthcare Facilities

One of the Primary Healthcare Centres constructed by Yobe State Government 

From JOE Hemba

Some communities in Yobe State bordering Niger Republic have been provided with health facilities by the State government.

 

The development has helped those communities from travelling a distance of miles into Niger Republic to seek medical treatment.

 

Some of the healthcare facilities were recently  inaugurated by the state Commissioner for Health Dr. Mohammed Lawan Gana on behalf of Gov. Mai Mala Buni.

 

Dr  Gana while briefing journalists in Damaturu over the weekend disclosed that “the  new healthcare centers were  established in Tulo-tulo, Dole-Machina, Mayori and Gumsa border communities by the Buni administration to make healthcare accessible and affordable in the communities”.

 

The Nation finding revealed that some of these communities are located at the fringes of the state in the northern part of Yobe over 400km from the state capital Damaturu.

 

The commissioner while explaining the health policy thrust of the Buni led administration said; “Governor Buni's policy of establishing one functional primary healthcare in every political ward, has made healthcare accessible and affordable to the communities is a working reality.

 

"I commissioned these facilities on behalf of His Excellency Governor Mai Mala Buni CON, to commence providing services to the people.

 

"Government provided the facilities with equipment, drugs and medical personnel for effective services" , the Commissioner said. 

 

He added that; "The Buni administration has established 138 out of the proposed 178 functional Primary Healthcare facilities in every political ward.

 

"Six Primary Healthcare Centers have been upgraded to General Hospitals and the four General Hospitals in Gashua, Potiskum, Buni Yadi and Geidam have been upgraded to Specialist Hospitals in addition to the one in Damaturu to bring healthcare delivery to the doorsteps of our people”.

 

women receiving treatment at one of the centres

He noted that the State government has since keyed into the Federal Government Contributory Healthcare Program which is already yielding a positive impact on the civil servants in the State and the vulnerable people.

 

 

“The  Buni administration introduced the Contributory Healthcare Programme for the formal and informal sector to boost effective medical services to civil servants and the vulnerable group.

 

“Similarly, the government has grossly subsidised medical charges in tertiary medical facilities.

 

“We charge N45,000 for MRI against N70,000-N100,000 paid in other states while N15,000 is charged for CT Scan against the exorbitant rates obtained in other health facilities".

 

The commissioner  assured the people of the state of improved healthcare services across the health facilities both primary,Secondary and Tertiary.

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COVID 19: Mercy Corps Organizes Media Visibility Campaign for Yobe Communities

One of the community leaders taking his COVID 19 vaccine during the media visibility  campaign in Damaturu

From JOE Hemba

Mercy Corps Nigeria today, Thursday carried out a media visibility campaign to four communities in Damaturu metropolis of Yobe State  to create awareness for the increase access to the vaccine. 

The event took the team which comprised of the Media and other stakeholders including community  leaders of the four political wards of Damaturu local government including Bindigari, Damaturu central, Gwange and Nayi-nawa ward. 

While flagging off the campaign, Fati Mustapha Jibrin a Director in Yobe State Primary Health Care Management Board called on the community members most especially women to take advantage of the availability of the vaccine at their door steps and get vaccinated. 

Hajiya Fati also advised the women to adhere to COVID 19 protocol for their personal and family hygiene. 

One of the community leaders who is also the Village Head of Pompomari Zanna Modu at the occasion took his second dose of the vaccine in the full view of his community as a mark of convincing others to accept the vaccine. 

He enjoined other members of the community to take a queue from him by taking the vaccine while  assuring of its safety. 

In her remarks, the Deputy Program Manager Covid-19 Vaccine Access Program Kauna Sugabkya said the event is targeted at creating awareness to the communities against some negative narratives around COVID 19 vaccines. 

She added that the media event will also dispel some of the wrong notions held by a section of the public  that the vaccine is harmful to the body, just as she urged them to get vaccinated.

 She explained that the media visibility event is a program under covid-19 Vaccine Access Program which is implemented by Mercy Corps and Care International across four (4) LGAs of Damaturu and Potiskum while Care International are implementing in Bade and Nguru Yobe State. 

 She warned the people that, “covid-19 is still here, let the community members take action today and get vaccinated, as that is the message for the media visibility event”, she said. 

The State Health Promotion Officer Mohammed Kado said advised all community leaders to get vaccinated at this time, stressing that “its very important for all the community members to get vaccinated most especially now that the cold season is beginning to surface because the vaccine will boast the immune system to fight against inner and external infection”. 

“Discard the rumor around the covid-19 vaccine. The vaccine has no side effect but rather serves as an immune boaster for both old and young. I encourage pregnant women to get vaccinated as the vaccine has no side effect on their unborn children,” Kado said. 

Nayi-nawa Community Leader Ajiya Kali called on the community members to get vaccinated for their own good and the general good of the community. 

He appreciated the effort of Mercy Corps as the only INGOs in the State that has identified with them in the past and therefore calling on the community members to cooperate with the campaigners by getting vaccinated against COVID 19.

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Yobe Governor Promises to Sustain Transparency and Accountability in governance

Gov. Buni

From JOE Hemba

After been rated as one of the best states for the State Fiscal Transparency Accountability and Sustainability(SFTAS), a World Bank Program on fiscal development project, Yobe state Governor Hon. Mai Mala Buni CON, has assured that his administration will keep the tempo in due process, transparency and accountability in government transactions in Nigeria. 

An elated Buni according to a statement  by his spokesman Mamman Mohammed said the governor was happy for the performance of the state for being rated as the “Overall Top Performer Award on State Fiscal Transparency Accountability and Sustainability (SFTAS) won by the state”. 

The statement noted that the governor has given his commitment to harvest on the gains of the award to have value for all the monies spent in the state. 

"We are a state with low revenue and in dire need of infrastructure and services, we have to use our resources judiciously and transparently to achieve our set targets to improve the lives of our people" Buni explained. 

The governor who dedicated the award to the Civil Servants in the state also commended them for their believe in his vision to drive the state to an enviable position on the national stage.

"I want to specially appreciate our civil servants who are the implementors of government policies and programmes and for being on the same page with the government to achieve this great feat. I dedicate this feat to all civil servants in the state. They made it happened, the Gov. said. 

IMPACTONLINENIGERIA  checks revealed that Yobe state was presented with the Top Performer overall best state among the 36 states of the federation at a dinner organised for the 36 state governors last week. 

 It will be recalled that, the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, at a celebration of the SFTAS Program’s successes said the Federal government celebrates the success of the SFTAS Programme and the presentation of the awards to best performing States in the successive Annual Performance Assessments was to spur the states to do more. 

The event was attended by the World Bank Country Director Shubham Chaudhuri, Governors of Ekiti, Edo, Jigawa, Sokoto, and Ebonyi among others. 

The World Bank authorised the four-year SFTAS Programme in June 2018, and it started in May 2019 to help states adopt fiscal transparency, accountability, and sustainability. 

The original $750 million loan from the World Bank was divided into two parts: performance-based grants from the federal government to states for meeting the annual eligibility requirements, and the program results, or disbursement linked indicators. SFTAS is intended to offer performance-based funds and technical assistance to states so they may implement the 22-point Fiscal Sustainability Plan and the Open Government Partnership. 

Its goal is to encourage states to dramatically improve outcomes in four key results. States are expected to achieve considerable improvements in four important areas: fiscal transparency and accountability; strengthening domestic revenue mobilization; raising the effectiveness of public spending; and strengthening debt sustainability. 

 Out of the $1.5bn released by the World Bank in two tranches of $750m each, the sum of N351.65bn had been disbursed to states that met the Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs). 

The Finance Minister said that since inception, the SFTAS programme has enjoyed a high level of political visibility, adding that the initiative has continued steadily with strong performance and demonstrable high level of ownership by States and Non-state Actors. 

 Meanwhile, the Director- General, Yobe state Bureau for Public Procurement, Alh. Samaila Mai Adamu, has attributed the rating of the state as the Overall Best Top Performer state by SFTAS to the leadership role of Governor Mai Mala Buni on Due Process. 

"Governor Buni has always insist that every project executed by the state government must be checked by the Bureau to undergo due process for transparency and accountability. '

I am glad that the Bureau has been performing its functions and responsibilities without hindrance or interference from the executive" he said. 

 Samaila said Yobe state also won the best state in Due Process, Accontability and Transparency award from the Association of Public Procurement Practitioners of Nigeria (APPPN). 

 "This SFTAS award is a confirmation of the APPPN award that Yobe state has now assumed a new leading status on accountability and transparency" Samaila said.

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COVID 19: Mercy Corps Organizes Community Dialogue to Increase Vaccine Access

Some of the female group reps at the Covid 19 dialogue in Damaturu

From JOE Hemba

Mercy Corps, one of the INGOs working in Nigeria has organized a one day dialogue with community leaders in Yobe State to discuss the way forward over the spread of the covid 19 virus and increase access to the vaccine.

The dialogue meeting which brought together religious leaders, community and women leaders, youth, as well as people living with disability was held at two communities of  Gwange Primary Health Care and Damaturu Central Primary School in Damaturu yesterday.

Both communities brainstorm on the way forward of mitigating the spread of the various and also increase the access to the COVID 19 vaccine in the state.

At separate messages during the dialogue, the Deputy Program Manager, Covid-19 Vaccine Access Program, Yobe  Kauna Sugabkya said the meeting  was to discuss SBC on the  poor Covid-19 vaccination at community levels due to ignorance of community members.

She noted that what  Mercy Corps is doing is part of her mandate to educate the relevant key stakeholders at the  dialogue session which  will in turn  give room for social behavioral change in Yobe State towards covid 19. 

Mrs Shugabkya explained that  the project is a one year project which will be carried out in 16 wards of Damaturu and Potiskum Local Government Areas in Yobe State.

She added that, the covid-19 vaccine access program was to improve covid-19 vaccination coverage by increasing vaccine confidence, acceptance and uptake in vulnerable communities in Nigeria

Some of the community leaders at the Gwange dialogue  like Mohammed Abatcha and Alhaji Baba Ali advised mercy Corps to provide incentives for the people while carrying out campaign as a well of motivating individuals and households to take the vaccine.

Another community leader, Mohammed Mustapha added  that “constant sensitization campaign through the community leader will enhanced large turned out of community members at the facility and centers”.

Pastor Istifanus Dauda and Hauwa Attahir at Damaturu Central Ward said there is need for constant sensitization and awareness campaign sessions in both worship centers and other social gatherings in other to enhance the acceptance of the vaccine at the community level.  

Highlights of the dialogues was the sharing of jingles by  Mrs Kauna Shugabkya with community, religious leader, People with Disability and woman leader on the importance of Covid-19 vaccination.

A new chat room called “Chat with Shehu” was also made available to the general public with people with smartphones users  to gained more information about Covid-19 on the WhatsAAp platform with the no 07034146757.

According to Mrs , Shugabkya, “Shehu understands Hausa, Kanuri and English”, and so anyone can chat with him in those languages

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