The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to improving access to sexual and reproductive health information and services for adolescents across the country, with a focus on family planning, STI/HIV prevention and counselling.
Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, disclosed this yesterday at the 2026 Gender and Inclusion Summit and National Dialogue on Transforming Gender Norms for Adolescent Health and Wellbeing, held in Abuja.
Salako said the government had expanded adolescent sexual and reproductive health services under the recently developed National Sexual and Reproductive Health Policy (2025–2030).
“We have expanded adolescent sexual and reproductive health services to improve access to sexual and reproductive health information and services, including family planning, STI/HIV prevention, and counselling as captured in the recently developed National Sexual and Reproductive Health Policy (2025-2030),” he said.
He said the government’s commitment formed part of broader efforts to strengthen adolescent health and address gender-related barriers that affect young people’s access to essential services.
According to him, the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare has also integrated gender and adolescent health programming through a dedicated Gender, Adolescent School Health and Elderly Care Division in the Family Health Department.
Salako said the platform would help address gender-related barriers to health services, gender-based vulnerabilities and the different health needs of adolescent girls and boys.
He further disclosed that the Federal Government’s national HPV vaccination campaign had reached more than 14 million adolescent girls aged nine to 14 across the country.
“The Federal Govenment has also successfully launched the national HPV vaccination campaign, reaching over 14 million adolescent girls (9-14 years old) across the federation and safeguarding them against future incidence of cervical cancer,” he said.
The minister said government policies and guidelines on adolescent health and gender programming were designed to strengthen adolescent-friendly service delivery and build the capacity of frontline health workers.
He also urged stakeholders to embrace gender-transformative approaches, strengthen multisectoral partnerships, translate evidence into policies and budgets, and establish mechanisms for accountability and youth participation in decision-making.
The summit, themed “From Agenda to Action: Making Innovation Count at the Last Mile,” brought together government, development partners, researchers, civil society, private sector and other stakeholders to deliberate on gender, inclusion and adolescent wellbeing.
