Jigawa partners M-RITE, trains health workers on budget preparation for routine immunisation

The ‘MOMENTUM’ Routine Immunisation Transformation and Equity project (M-RITE), in partnership with the Jigawa State Ministry of Health, has concluded a comprehensive training programme for local government healthcare workers focused on budget preparation for routine immunisation.

The initiative is designed to improve the change agents’ skills in developing evidence-based budgeting that would facilitate the mobilisation of resources at the local government level to support routine immunisation service delivery and help address critical barriers to effective uptake of routine immunisation.

Funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), ‘MOMENTUM’ is managed by JSI Research and Training Institute, Inc., along with several implementing partners – R4D, led a capacity-building activity designed to enhance the prioritisation of immunisation delivery costs in both LGA and state budgets.

This effort aims to improve immunisation services and boost coverage among zero-dose and under-immunised children.

The acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Auwalu Bello, highlighted the comprehensive nature of the three-day workshop.

He said participants were given an in-depth understanding of the state budget cycle and trained on the various stages of health budgeting, including preparation, approval, execution, and evaluation.

“The objective is to empower participants to advocate for the inclusion of routine immunisation in local government budgets by mastering the budget processes,” Mr Bello stated.

Jose Gonzalez, Senior Programme Officer from R4D, said that the objective of the workshop is for participants to understand the budget preparation processes and their roles within each phase of the budget cycle.

He added that this would strengthen their ability to create compelling budgets for routine immunisation and budget request memos, ultimately increasing local-level financial ownership of routine immunisation services.

Arowolo Ayoola, the consultant leading the activity in Jigawa state emphasised that the training aimed to provide practical solutions and enhance the skills of healthcare workers, thus improving the uptake of routine immunisation in Jigawa.

Usman Ahmed, Deputy Director of the Department of Planning Research and Statistics at the Ministry of Health also tutored participants on healthcare financing and the necessity of domestic resource mobilisation for routine immunisation to address child mortality.

Participants at the training, including PHC managers, Directors of Administrative and General Services (DAGS), Local Government Immunisation Officers (LIO), and Routine Immunisation Officers (RIOs), discussed the barriers to mobilising domestic funding for routine immunisation at the local government level.

They proposed solutions and action points to increase the prioritisation of routine immunisation activities in local government areas through proper and timely budget preparation.

One of the participants, Gambu Guri, expressed delight that the training significantly enhanced his knowledge and skills in preparing timely budgets for routine immunisation at the local government level. Hauwa Babayero, another participant, pledged to apply her newly acquired knowledge in budget processes to improve domestic resource mobilisation in her local government area.

The ‘MOMENTUM’ project, through this training initiative, is a significant step towards ensuring that routine immunisation is prioritised and adequately funded at the local government level, thereby safeguarding the health of children in the state.