States Recommit to Strengthening Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health as A360 Project Marks Major Milestones
State governments on Thursday reaffirmed their commitment to advancing sexual and reproductive health among adolescent girls, vowing to sustain and expand the gains made through the Adolescent 360 (A360) Amplify Project.
The pledge was made in Abuja during the dissemination meeting for the A360 Amplify project—an initiative implemented by the Society for Family Health (SFH) and partners, and later integrated into government systems following its positive outcomes.
Launched in 2020, A360 was designed to provide adolescent girls with access to accurate sexual and reproductive health information, youth-friendly services, and economic empowerment opportunities. The programme, rolled out in Kano, Jigawa, Kaduna, and Nasarawa States, adopted a human-centred approach, collaborating with governments, communities, and young people to improve family planning uptake and maternal health services.
Promoting adolescent sexual and reproductive health remains crucial for helping young people make informed decisions, preventing early pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections, and securing their future wellbeing.
The Permanent Secretary, Kaduna State Ministry of Health, Dr Aisha Sadiq, reiterated that the state is deeply committed to institutionalising A360 interventions. She revealed that Kaduna now offers A360 youth-friendly services across 623 Primary Health Care centres, while the Matasan Mata Arewa initiative has reached 75 communities, equipping over 15,000 girls with entrepreneurship skills and providing many with seed capital.
She further disclosed that more than 60,000 girls have accessed contraceptives through the project, with reduced discontinuation rates as adolescents increasingly transition to broader maternal and child health services.
“These changes have shown a marked reduction in maternal mortality and negative neonatal outcomes,” she said, adding that the state’s 16% health budget allocation and integration of A360 activities into its 2025 Annual Operational Plan underscore continued government support.
In Jigawa, the Commissioner of Information, Youth, Sports, and Culture, Sagir Musa, praised A360’s impact, noting that youth engagement has been a highly effective strategy. He reaffirmed the state’s dedication to sustaining and scaling the initiative.
“I want to assure SFH that the federal and state governments have shown real commitment. This project may be nearing closure, but for us, it has just begun. We have gone beyond its life cycle to embed its approaches in what we do,” he said.
On behalf of all implementing states, he pledged continued support to the health sector, the Federal Ministry of Health, and community development bodies, emphasizing that states are poised to build on the programme’s successes.
The Managing Director of SFH, Dr Omokhudu Idogho, noted that the four states have fully embedded A360 approaches into their health systems and community structures. Represented by the Deputy Managing Director for Project Delivery, Dr Kenechukwu Erichalo, he highlighted the project’s milestone achievements:
- Over 1 million adolescent girls reached with family planning services
- More than 500,000 adolescents provided with comprehensive sexuality education
- Over 50,000 antenatal care visits recorded
- More than 500,000 girls supported with income-generating skills
He stressed that the programme’s human-centred, culturally sensitive design through models like Matasan Mata Arewa and Niger Girls proved effective even in conservative communities.
“Our most significant achievement is institutionalisation. Today, all 1,750 A360-supported facilities are fully government-led,” he said. A360’s innovations are now embedded in state policies, guidelines, and training curricula, solidifying them as standard practice.
The A360 Project Lead, Mrs Roselyn Odeh, explained that the initiative was created to address Nigeria’s troubling health indices for adolescent girls. She noted that the project ensured access to respectful, youth-friendly services at PHCs while strengthening girls’ economic viability through entrepreneurship training and school reintegration partnerships.
She added that data guided the decision to scale the programme in northern states where maternal mortality among young people is highest. Despite structural challenges, A360 worked with governments to mobilise domestic funding through health revolving funds and the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund.
Overall, the reaffirmed commitment by implementing states signals a sustained, long-term investment in the health, empowerment, and future of adolescent girls in Nigeria.