By Musa Ubandawaki, Sokoto

As the world marked World Contraception Day 2025, women in Sokoto have joined the global call for improved access to family planning and contraceptive services, emphasizing their critical role in saving lives, protecting mothers, and securing children’s futures.

Speaking at an event held at Rumbukawa Clinic, Halimatu Sani Tuntube of Shuni described the day as a reminder of the health and dignity of millions of women across Nigeria. Sharing her personal experience, she explained that embracing family planning transformed her life after several risky pregnancies.

“Child spacing gave me strength and saved me from the dangers of back-to-back pregnancies. Today I am healthier, my children are healthier, and I can contribute meaningfully to my family and community,” she said with conviction.

Halimatu stressed that contraception is not about denying women children but about ensuring every pregnancy is safe and wanted. “Family planning is life planning. Without it, too many mothers suffer, and too many children are lost,” she added.

For Rabin Sale from Tureta, family planning has been key to survival. She recalled the challenges of raising children without spacing and the toll it took on her health. “I nearly lost my life because I had children too close together. It was family planning that gave me back control of my life,” she said.

Rabin emphasized that contraception empowers women to make informed choices. “With child spacing, I can breastfeed my children well, care for them properly, and still have time to regain my strength. It has brought peace to my home,” she testified.

Their stories reinforce the global message of World Contraception Day: access to family planning is not just a health issue, but a fundamental human right. Experts agree that contraceptive access reduces maternal deaths, prevents unsafe abortions, and ensures children get the best start in life.

Health advocates in Sokoto, including Dr. Halima Aliyu, a gynaecologist at Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), reiterated that family planning is crucial to reducing Nigeria’s high maternal and child mortality rates. She noted that when families can space their children, communities thrive, poverty declines, and the cycle of ill health is broken.

As the world commemorates this day, the testimonies of Halimatu and Rabin serve as living evidence that contraception saves lives and transforms futures. Their voices call on government, development partners, and community leaders to strengthen investments in reproductive health and ensure no woman is left behind.

“Contraception is about dignity, health, and the future of our children,” Halimatu concluded. “We must all speak out until every woman has access to it.”