Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare

FAMILY HEALTH

The Department of Family Health was created from the Department of Community Development and
Population Activities in July 2008. The Department plays a prominent and pivotal role in contributing to
the improvement of the health indices of the country as well as the achievement of the Health related
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Specifically, the Department has a crucial role in actualising Goal
3 of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. The Department acvhieves this through the Nigeria
MPDSR Platform

Mission

The Mission of the Department is “to develop and coordinate the implementation of policies and
programmes that promote the health of the family through efficient integrated health services in
Nigeria”.

Mandate

The Department is responsible for development of policyand implementation framework on maternal,

newborn , child and adolescent Co-ordination and provision of technical assistance to States and Local
Governments on the implementation of Family Health Supply of reproductive health commodities to
States and Local Implementation of Integrated Supportive Supervision of Family Health programmes
nationwide.

Core Departmental Functions

The Family Health Department’s core functions include:

Effective coordination of Nutrition, Reproductive, Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health, Gender,
Adolescent Health Development, School Health, Elderly Care and Wellbeing that proactively contribute
to overall family health in Nigeria. Collaboration with all Departments within the Federal Ministry of
Health, line Ministries and Development Partners as well as other relevant stakeholders to promote
quality services and empower individuals and communities to make informed decisions about their
health, thereby promoting healthy lifestyles and enhanced quality of life of Nigerians.

DIVISIONS IN THE DEPARTMENT

The Department consists of five Divisions namely:

Child Health Division Gender, Adolescent School Health and Elderly Care (GASHE) Division Health
Promotion Division Nutrition Division Reproductive Health Division

CHILD HEALTH DIVISION

The Child Health Division is made up of three branches

Child Survival; Newborn Care Maternal Newborn and Child Health Coordination/Programme
Management

The functions of the Division covering all the branches are as listed below:

Focal point on issues concerning the health and total well-being of the Nigerian child; Provision of policy
direction as well as formulation of policies and guidelines on issues pertaining to the health of the
Nigerian Child; Coordination of all programmes and activities related to Child health; Coordination of all
programmes and activities of the National Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health
secretariat; Coordination of the meetings of the Core Technical Committee (CTC) for Maternal, Newborn
and Child Health

To ensure implementation of recommended action points of CTC; To ensure implementation of

Integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (IMNCH) policy strategy at the State level in accordance
with the National guidelines; Focal point between the Federal Ministry of Health and State Ministries of
Health on the implementation of the IMNCH Strategy; Development of proposal and budget action
plans related to child health as well as IMNCH Provision of technical support to State Ministries of
Health/State IMNCH focal persons on issues pertaining to Maternal and Child health; Sensitization of
State Commissioners of Health, LGA Chairman and opinion leaders in the community/community-based
organizations on Maternal, Newborn and Child health matters; Development and institutionalisation of
Supervision, Monitoring and Evaluation systems for implementation of Maternal and Child Health
interventions at the State level; Performance of any other functions assigned by the Honourable
Minister of Health through the Head of Department.
GENDER, ADOLESCENT SCHOOL HEALTH AND ELDERLY CARE (GASHE) DIVISION

The GASHE Division is made up of three branches viz:

Adolescent/ School Health Care of the Elderly Gender and Female Genital Mutilation Control

The functions of the Division covering all the branches include:

Provision of Leadership for programmes in Gender, Adolescent School Health and Elderly Care
Coordination of Activities in Gender, Adolescent School Health and Elderly Care Programmes;
Management of Resources for Gender, Adolescent/School Health and Elderly Care Programmes;
Performance of other functions assigned by the Honourable Minister of Health through the Head of
Department.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH DIVISION

The Reproductive Health Division is made up of three branches viz;

Safe Motherhood; Family Planning Services and Logistics Vesico-Vagina Fistula Control Programme

The functions of the Division covering all the three branches are as listed below:

a) Safe Motherhood Branch

Mandate: Improvement of Maternal and Newborn Health with reduction in maternal mortality ratio
through ensuring skilled attendance at birth, provision of equipment, Midwifery and Mama Kits among
others.
Functions:

Development of training manuals on life Saving Skills for Doctors, Midwives and Community Health
Extension Workers Development and printing of National Guidelines on Maternal and Newborn Health
Development and printing of Information Education and Communication materials relating to Maternal
and Newborn Health Development of protocols on Essential Obstetric Services Development of Job aids
on Safe Motherhood Working in Partnership with Development Partners on Safe Motherhood Projects
in Nigeria–WHO, UNFPA, IPAs, Pathfinder International, CEDPA, MacArthur Foundation, Venture
Strategies for Health Development & IPAs. Monitoring and Supervision of Safe Motherhood Programs in
the country.

b). Family Planning Branch

Mandate: To ensure the availability of contraceptive commodities for provision of quality Family
Planning Services at all levels of Healthcare delivery for the purpose of Family planning/child birth
spacing and prevention of sexually transmitted infections.

Functions

Training of Clinical Service Providers on Modern Methods of Family Planning Development and Review
of Training Manuals, Guidelines and Protocols on Family Planning Services; Production of Information
Education Communication/Behaviour Change Communication materials on Family Planning Work in
Partnership with Development Partners on Family Planning projects in Nigeria- World Health
Organisation (WHO) , United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA), Society for Family Health (SFH), Family
Health International (FHI), Association for Reproductive and Family Health (ARFH), Nigerian Urban
Reproductive Health Initiative (NUHRI), Department for International Development (DfID), United States
Agency for International Development (USAID), John Snow Incorporated/Deliver Project, Bayer Pharma
& Merck Sharpe among others

Forecasting and procurement of Family Planning Commodities. Mobilization of resources for the
procurement of contraceptive commodities using UNFPA facilities. Distribution of procured commodities
to the 36 states of the federation and Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Building the capacity of
implementers on the Contraceptive Logistics Management System (CLMS). Coordination of State
implementers on Family planning. Monitoring and evaluation of the National Family Planning Programs
in the states

c). Vesico-Vaginal Fistula Control Branch

Functions:

Co-ordination of Vesico-Vagina Fistula Control activities in existing VVF centers through facility
supportive supervision. Co-ordination of the Partners and other Stakeholders involved in the VVF
prevention and management. Holding National Technical Working Group Meetings. Organising
International Day Activity to end Fistula. Monitoring and evaluation of VVF activities across the country.
Training of Doctors, Nurses and Medical Personnel’s on the management of VVF. Organizing mass repair
of VVF cases across the country.

HEALTH PROMOTION DIVISION

The Health Promotion Division is made up of three branches viz;

Health Education ; Service Improvement; Advocacy/ Behaviour Change Communication Materials

Development;

The functions of the Division covering all the three branches are as listed below:

Development of Healthy Public Policies; Creation of supportive environments for health; Strengthening
of community action for health; Capacity building for best Health Promotion practices; Re-orientation of
health service providers; Development of Health Promotion Behaviour Change Communication (BCC)
Materials;

Public enlightenment and awareness creation/campaigns on public health issues.

NUTRITION DIVISION
The Nutrition Division is made up of three branches viz;

Micronutrient Deficiency Control Monitoring and Evaluation/Nutrition Information and Surveillance

System (M & E NISS) Infant and Young Child Feeding

The activities of the Nutrition Division are based on the National Nutrition Policy/Programme having an
overall objective to improve and sustain the nutritional status of Nigerians and combat the problem of
nutrient deficiencies especially Micronutrient Deficiencies and Protein Energy Malnutrition.

The functions of the division covering all the three divisions include:

Provision of leadership for programmes in Nutrition, Infant & Young Child Feeding, Micronutrient
Deficiencies Control and M & E/NISS; Coordination of Activities in Nutrition Programmes; Management
of Resources for Nutrition Programmes; Collaboration with Partners in the development and
Implementation of Nutrition Programmes; Policy Formulation on Nutrition related matters; Provision of
guidelines for service delivery; Advocacy, Information, Education, and Communication; Capacity Building
(Training); Monitoring, Supervision and Evaluation; Carry out other functions assigned by the
Honourable Minister of Health through the Head of Department; The Head of Division is the Country
Focal Point for Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement in Nigeria

SAVING ONE MILLION LIVES PROGRAMME FOR RESULTS (SOML P for R).

The SOML P for R is a government program launched in 2012 which aims to change the focus on inputs
(such as drugs, health facilities, hiring more healthy workers) to results for beneficiaries. The program
(supported by a $500 million credit from the World Bank that became effective in late May 2015
rewards states with unified fiscal transfers from the Federal Government when they achieve
improvements in the coverage and quality of key Maternal and Child Health (MCH) services as measured
by independent household and health facility surveys.

Functions
Coordination and provision of Technical Support to State Ministries of Health. Timely collection of data
and its publication. Implementing and overseeing the disbursements of funds to States. Facilitating the
disbursement of funds to the States.

Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare

Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare is a world-class Government Institution that ensures a
healthy Nigeria through the provision of effective healthcare facilities and humanitarian services