Kwara Opens Youth-Friendly Health Centre: HFDI, Jhpiego, KWSPHCDA Partner to “Catch Them Young, Empower Them Early”
Kwara State has taken a major step in adolescent health with the commissioning and official handover of a Youth-Friendly Centre at Ogele Primary Health Centre, Asa Local Government Area.
The event was part of the Integrated Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights and Communicable Diseases, iSRHR-CD, Project, aimed at strengthening access to adolescent- and youth-responsive health information and services in the state.
The programme brought together Hope for Family Development Initiative, HFDI, Jhpiego, the Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, KWSPHCDA, and other partners.
In his remarks the HFDI Executive Director, Dr. Amb. Stephen Aremu Akinyele, represented by HFDI Program Expert commended Kwara government for the initiative.
Mr. Williams Awotunde, State Team Lead and SRHR Coordinator, Jhpiego Nigeria, Kwara State, acknowledged support from project donors, particularly The Global Fund, and key partners including WHO, UNICEF, and HFDI, lauding Ambassador. Akinyele for HFDI’s continued collaboration in advancing adolescent and youth health in Kwara.
Mr. Awotunde also applauded the Kwara State Government and KWSPHCDA, under the leadership of Professor Nusirat Elelu, for their commitment to strengthening primary healthcare and creating responsive services for young people.
In her goodwill message, Professor Nusirat Elelu, Executive Secretary, Kwara State Primary Healthcare Development Agency KWSPHCDA, described the intervention as timely, noting that many health programs often overlook adolescents.
She stressed the need to “catch them young” by engaging adolescents early with the right information, support and services in an environment tailored to their needs.
“Emphasising that many health interventions do not adequately capture adolescents and young people, yet we must reach them early,” she said, before declaring the Youth-Friendly Centre officially open.
The newly established centre provides a welcoming space designed to encourage adolescents to engage with health services, a deliberate effort to make primary healthcare more youth-friendly and responsive to the realities of young people.It has facilities such as smart television, books, and recreational games, combining health education, learning, recreation, and positive social engagement.
Stakeholders described the commissioning as more than the opening of a facility. It signals a shared commitment by the Kwara State Government, KWSPHCDA, Jhpiego, HFDI, The Global Fund, WHO, UNICEF, and other partners to ensure adolescents and young people are not left behind in accessing essential health information and services.
For HFDI, the event reinforced the importance of partnership and collective action in advancing adolescent health and investing in a healthier generation.
Highlight of the event was the formal commissioning and handover of the Youth-Friendly Centre, marking a new chapter for adolescent- and youth-responsive healthcare in Kwara State.