The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says it will rehabilitate 11 primary healthcare facilities to enhance access to quality healthcare services in Bauchi State.

Nuzhat Rafique, chief of the UNICEF field office in Bauchi, said this on Monday at a meeting between officials of the fund, the state Primary Healthcare Development Agency (PHCDA), and the eight participating local government councils.

She said the agency has formally handed over the facilities to UNICEF for revitalisation within a three-month timeline.

Ms Rafique said the revitalisation project would cover service delivery points, water supply, and the solarisation of facilities, and urged contractors handling the projects to adhere to UNICEF guidelines.

The UNICEF official said that two facilities would be upgraded, one in Ningi and one in Ganjuwa, while one clinic would be selected in each of Alkaleri, Bauchi, Gamawa, Itas/Gadau, Katagum, Shira, and Toro.

She said the intervention was aimed at ensuring women and children have access to quality healthcare services.

Ms Rafique tasked local health officials and stakeholders to ensure effective monitoring of the projects and urged residents to cooperate with the workers.

She commended the state government for providing an enabling environment to ease its operations and prioritising women and children’s issues.

The chairman of the PHCDA, Rilwanu Mohammed, said the agency had relocated the facilities to facilitate smooth healthcare service delivery in the benefiting communities.

“The work is expected to be completed on time because it is not easy to move healthcare facilities away from their sites for a long period,” he said.

He said accommodation spaces would be identified for PHCs to facilitate services uptake, stressing that girl-child education remained key to healthcare uptake.

“If the girl child is educated, she will not deliver at home or refuse to access care for herself and her children,” he said. 

(NAN)