By Yunusa Isa, Gombe

In spirit of the 2024 International Women’s Day Celebration, birth spacing has been identified as best way to empower women by reducing maternal mortality and encouraging them attain socioeconomic objectives.

Gombe State Coordinator Family Planning, Grace Saleh Mabuɗi made the description during an interview with newsmen to commemorate this year’s International Women’s Day.

Mabuɗi said “As this year’s theme for International Women’s Day indicates; ‘Inspire Inclusion to Accelerate Progress’, the best way to empower a woman is to improve on her health. When a woman is well and healthy, she could be able to give in her best to her community, her family and then to the world at large”.

“The most important way to boost the health of a woman of reproductive age is to space her births. By so doing, she could be able to recover and regain her strength from the previous pregnancy”, she added.

The coordinator said birth spacing helps women achieve their set targets in the economy, and in her education and that of her children.

She maintained that when a woman spaces her births, she can have enough time for studies, as pregnancy and breastfeeding could not be hurdles in her academic journey.

The coordinator admitted that birth spacing allow women attain higher education, diversify their business opportunities and achieve many other targets.

Grace Mabuɗi added that birth spacing is one of the strategies put in place to reduce maternal mortality and morbidly which is high in the Northeast and Gombe State.

She encouraged men to empower their women by allowing them subscribe to any suitable birth spacing method to improve on their health.

Commenting on the myths and misconceptions about birth spacing methods, Grace said “No birth spacing method directly causes cancer”, advising women with complications from any birth spacing method to visit the nearest health facility for professional counseling.

She appreciated the support Gombe enjoyed from The Challenge Initiative (TCI) on birth spacing, assuring that the state family planning unit shall sustain the achievements of TCI and even scale up.

She said the unit synergize with the TCI Media Working Group in sensitizing communities through traditional and religious leaders on the health and socioeconomic advantages of birth spacing.