Global Reach

Nigeria

Nigeria, a West African country with a total population of over 200 million people, is the most populated country in Africa. In recent years, Nigeria has implemented key maternal and newborn health policies and guidelines, including: a quality of care guideline; a family planning (FP) and contraception guideline; a national surgical obstetrics, anesthesia, and nursing plan; and laws guaranteeing universal access to primary healthcare.

The modern contraceptive prevalence rate for all women ages 15 to 49 is 11.7%. The maternal mortality ratio is 917 deaths per 100,000 live births. Of women ages 15 to 49, 33.4% have experienced physical or sexual violence.

Our Work in Nigeria

EngenderHealth began working in Nigeria in 1986. From 2005 to 2021, the organization led Fistula Care and Fistula Care Plus (FC+), USAID’s flagship fistula prevention and treatment programs, and is continuing this work through the MOMENTUM Safe Surgery in Family Planning and Obstetrics program. In Nigeria, EngenderHealth works alongside communities, partners, and local and national governments to support quality surgical obstetric care, fistula prevention, and fistula treatment and care through clinical capacity building, partnerships with communities and civil society organizations, and health systems strengthening.

FC+ scaled up standard monitoring and evaluation and strengthened the evidence base to improve fistula care and treatment; improved community understanding and practices to prevent fistula; reduced stigma and supported reintegration of those with fistula; reduced barriers to accessing care and support; and strengthened provider, facility, and system capacities. EngenderHealth also co-facilitated national stakeholders’ meetings to ensure coordination between providers and stakeholders. Through FC+, EngenderHealth supported 7,295 surgical repairs and training for 34 surgeons and 1,317 other healthcare workers in fistula prevention and treatment. Further, the program delivered 1,166,080 FP counseling sessions and 643,595 couple-years of protection, and reached 792,934 individuals through in-person community outreach activities, including through training 1,181 community volunteers and educators.

The MOMENTUM Safe Surgery in Family Planning and Obstetrics program builds on and expands our decades-long work and leadership in identifying and addressing the causes of obstetric fistulas through our Fistula Care and FC+ programs. In Nigeria, the program works to increase the ability of Nigerian local institutions to provide safe surgical obstetric care, including the prevention and treatment of obstetric fistula. The program also works with the government, the health sector, and communities to develop and carry out interventions to prevent female genital cutting (FGC) and mitigate adverse obstetric impacts among women who have experienced FGC.

Through the Hormonal Intrauterine Device (IUD) Roll Out and Scale Up program, EngenderHealth provides technical assistance to Nigerian public health facilities across Bauchi and Sokoto states to improve their ability to offer high-quality hormonal IUD services. Funded by the Clinton Health Access Initiative’s Catalytic Opportunity Fund, this program strengthens the capacity of national- and regional-level trainers to provide instruction to healthcare workers on hormonal IUD service provision, and it enhances the readiness of public health facilities to offer those services. EngenderHealth is working with local and national partners to strengthen health systems and expand access to contraceptive choices to all clients in Nigeria—facilitating access to this highly effective contraception (IUD) method is vital to our mission. When women have access to safe, effective, and affordable contraceptive care, we move closer to a gender-equal world where all people achieve their sexual and reproductive health and rights.