Under the constraints presented by US sanctions against the Nigerian military government during the early 1990s, BASICS was compelled to develop a program for ameliorating child health in the absence of Nigerian government involvement. The Community Partners for Health (CPH) model, in which partnerships between community-based organizations (CBOs) and private health facilities are facilitated and fostered, was implemented to meet this constraint.
However, with the country’s recent transition from military dictatorship to democracy, it has become increasingly important to re-assess the role and responsibilities of BASICS in Nigeria’s urban communities and to determine how CPHs might be adapted to the country’s shifting socio-political landscape.
In particular, BASICS has identified the following needs for the expansion and re-conceptualization of the CPH model in democratic Nigeria: to broaden the base of implementing partners in the CPH model to include the public sector, to integrate its project with existing government initiatives, and to expand the program to a larger number of states.
In the CPH model, the significance of women’s roles in their families and communities is highlighted. Thus, in this presentation, immunization, care-seeking, and breastfeeding are explored and discussed in the context of gender roles, women’s empowerment and urban poverty. In particular, this report focuses on the interrelationship of these factors in Northern Nigeria (Kano City), which has proven to be a more socially complex region, due to its inhabitants’ beliefs regarding gender roles, ethnicity and religion.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to: 1. Describe the impact of Islam on traditional gender roles and child care practices. 2. Define the challenges posed by culturally-ascribed gender roles in child health/child survival initiatives. 3. Provide recommendations for developing women's empowerment programs within child health initiatives.
Keywords: Children's Health, Women
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: BASICS
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.