SCIDaR

Despite Nigeria’s success in polio eradication, gaps remain in routine immunization, zero-dose identification, and Primary Health Care (PHC) strengthening, especially with declining donor funding. Without sustained leadership and collaboration, hard-won gains could be reversed. On February 7, 2025, the SCIDaR team, led by our CEO, Dr. Uchenna Igbokwe paid an advocacy visit to the World Health Organization (WHO) Country Representative, Dr. Walter Kazadi Mulombo, and his team at the UN House, Abuja to explore ways to sustain progress in polio eradication, bolster routine immunization, and improve primary healthcare access. The discussions reinforced the need for a unified approach; one plan, one budget, and one report, aligned with national priorities. There was also a strong push for deeper collaboration on key programs like Polio Outbreak Response (POBR), Routine Immunization (RI) Zero Dose, SPARK, and SARMAAN, as well as capability mapping to prevent duplication of efforts and to expand partnerships beyond polio, particularly in the Lake Chad Basin. Stronger partnerships mean more children immunized, more resilient health systems, and a future where preventable diseases no longer threaten lives. The work continues, because sustainability is the real success. #SCIDaRImpact #PolioEradication #RoutineImmunization #StrongerHealthSystems #HealthSustainability

Eid Mubarak from all of us at SCIDaR! May this season bring peace, renewed hope, and shared prosperity to all. ✨ #SCIDaRImpact #eidmubarak

@DorcasMaliki Wishing you a great week - where you beat this goal and move like you're deserving to be there, because you are!👏🏾

@SCIDaR_ This is typically me, I always lack the confidence to speak up. But this a call to really work and reflect on. Those who mostly speak aren't the most intelligent but they have the confidence to

“Silence doesn’t protect you; it just delays your growth.” In this episode of the One Thing Series, Nashima Tarnongu, an Analyst at SCIDaR, reflects on a time when speaking up didn’t come easily. She often had the right ideas and contributions, but hesitation and fear held her back in key moments. With encouragement from her manager, support from teammates, and a growing belief in her own voice, Nashima gradually found the confidence to speak up, becoming a stronger contributor within her team and across SCIDaR. Listen to her full story. More weekly reflections from the SCIDaR team are coming your way this season on the One Thing Series. #SCIDaRImpact #OneThingSeries

@Ifunany04397439 Thank you!

@SCIDaR_ This is the awakening video most people need!. Amazing work🤩

While women make up about 38% of judges in Nigeria overall (IAWJ), in Nigeria's superior courts, women held just 66 of 208 seats as of 2022 (National Judicial Council data). Leadership is where the gap is sharpest. This year, we recognize these three trailblazers in Nigeria!

Globally, women still have only 64% of the legal rights that men do. Today, as we mark IWD 2026 centred on Rights, Justice, Action, equality is about women and girls actually exercising their rights in everyday life. This IWD, we recommit to that work. #InternationalWomensDay2026

Every 11 minutes, a woman or girl is killed by someone in her own family. Violence like this does not happen in isolation. It is sustained by silence, harmful norms, and systems that do not always protect survivors. This International Women’s Day, the theme “Give to Gain” is a reminder that change requires something from all of us. Here are practical ways we can all contribute to ending gender-based violence and providing safer spaces for women to thrive. When we give these things, we gain safer homes, stronger systems, and communities where women and girls can live without fear. Our latest blog reflects on why ending gender-based violence requires collective responsibility and why building a safer future for women and girls starts with all of us. 👇See thread for more 🔗 Read the full blog: Give to Gain: Building a Safer Future for Women Starts With Us scidar.org/give-to-gain-b… #InternationalWomensDay #IWD2026 #GiveToGain #EndGBV #GenderEquality #SafeSpaces #SCIDaRImpact

When we invest in women, we invest in everything. This #InternationalWomensDay, SCIDaR stands proudly with every woman who has dared to lead, to push boundaries, and to demand better for herself and those around her. This year's theme, “Give to gain”, reminds us that good intentions are not enough. Real change requires deliberate effort, bold decisions, and sustained investment. Through our SAGE project, we are accelerating the professional growth of women within our organization, creating pathways for leadership, mentorship, and development across all cadres. But our commitment doesn't stop at our doors. SAGE works within communities to address the gender disparities and systemic barriers that limit women’s opportunities, while taking a firm and unwavering stand against gender-based violence. To every woman in SCIDaR and beyond, your strength moves us, your work inspires us, and your potential drives everything we do. Today and always, we celebrate you. Happy International Women’s Day! #IWD2026 #GiveToGain #SCIDaR #SAGEProject #InternationalWomensDay #GenderEquality

Highlights from the recently concluded close-out workshop, marking the completion of the Geospatial Landscape Insights in Priority Geographies Project, implemented by SCIDaR, in collaboration with @NASRDA_Official and @NphcdaNG , with support from the @GatesAfrica and Dev-Afrique Development Advisors under the Umbrella Fund for Geospatial Interventions! More below👇🏾 #UmbrellaFund #SCIDaRImpact

Yesterday was Zero Discrimination Day. Today, the work continues. In his Op-Ed, Dr. Abdulateef Salisu, Principal at the Solina Centre for International Development and Research (SCIDaR) and leads the Public Health portfolio including the HIV/AIDS Program, argues that putting People First in Nigeria’s HIV response is not idealism but an evidence based necessity. Stigma and discrimination are not abstract social issues; they directly affect testing, treatment continuity, and viral suppression. Through the ASPIRE Project, funded by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN), supported by SCIDaR is strengthening systems to ensure dignity, confidentiality, and data-driven decision-making remain central to HIV service delivery.Because ending AIDS requires systems people trust. Read the full Op-Ed and accompanying blog here: Op-Ed: businessday.ng/life/article/p… Blog Post:scidar.org/zero-discrimin… #ZeroDiscriminationDay #PeopleFirst #HIVResponse #HealthSystems #ASPIRE

Zero Discrimination Day reinforces the call to restore dignity and eradicate stigma not just today, but every day. It is the constant pursuit of a world where no one is defined by labels, and where equality is not selective but universal. We all deserve care, access, and a fair opportunity to thrive. This year’s focus by UNAIDS toward ending AIDS by 2030 remains urgent. But how can we reach that collective goal while stigma, shame, and discrimination persist for people living with HIV? Many still hesitate to seek or continue treatment due to breaches of privacy in health facilities or bias in workplaces, among other lived experiences. At SCIDaR, in partnership with the Institute of Human Virology (IHVN), we prioritize strengthening linkage to care so that every person can access services built on trust and respect. Through the ASPIRE project, Enhanced Adherence Counselling (EAC) fosters one-on-one engagement between patients and health workers, building confidence, improving treatment adherence, and strengthening health outcomes across the states where we operate. Through the ACE programme, we are also building sustainable government capacity to finance HIV care and treatment, while strengthening Private Sector Providers, including clinics, laboratories, pharmacies, and patent medicine vendors, alongside community-based and civil society organisations to deliver responsive and resilient HIV services. We remain committed to supporting governments and communities not only to identify cases, but to ensure that every patient is treated with transparency, dignity, and compassion. Explore ASPIRE’s lessons and insights from the field: businessday.ng/life/article/p… #SCIDaRImpact #ZeroDiscriminationDay #EndAIDS2030 #HealthEquity #EqualAccess

At the final quarterly stakeholder meeting of Project Oscar – Light for Life, held on last week at the Surgical Skills Laboratory Centre of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital , The Wellbeing Foundation Africa convened partners and stakeholders to review progress, share implementation insights, and reflect on the growing impact of this life-saving neonatal intervention. During the meeting, the Director of Programmes and Reporting WBFA, Dr. Osinachi Onyezirim, presented a comprehensive programme update, highlighting how screening protocols have now been standardised across 16 health facilities, with functional bilirubinometers and phototherapy units successfully deployed to strengthen early detection and treatment capacity. To date, 290 healthcare workers have been trained, nearly 30,000 women have been reached with awareness and education, over 8,800 newborns have been screened, and more than 900 newborns have received early treatment preventing avoidable complications and safeguarding healthy beginnings. In her goodwill message, Her Excellency Mrs. @ToyinSaraki, Founder of the Wellbeing Foundation Africa, issued a clear and strategic call for neonatal jaundice management to be standardised and fully integrated into Nigeria’s healthcare system. She emphasised that this initiative exemplifies true systems strengthening data-driven, partnership-led, policy-aligned, and anchored in long-term sustainability. Dr. Bolade Kokoye, Director of Family Health and Nutrition at the Lagos State Ministry of Health, reaffirmed the State’s commitment to institutionalising the refined protocols, technologies, and referral pathways developed through Project Oscar into routine maternal and child health services, ensuring that progress made under the programme translates into enduring policy and practice. Project Oscar – Light for Life was designed as a comprehensive systems-strengthening intervention to close these gaps in screening, referral pathways, equipment access, and community awareness across different levels of healthcare. Funded by our social impact partner @ThisIsReckitt and implemented by the Wellbeing Foundation Africa in collaboration with @NEST360org , the Solina Centre for International Development and Research (@SCIDaR_ ), London school of hygiene @LSHTM and the Lagos State Government @followlasg . This programme continues to demonstrate that systemic changes become achievable through strategic partnerships building standardised framework of care that ensures every newborn in Nigeria has an equitable chance at survival and a healthy start to life. #Frontlinefriday #Projectoscar #Lightforlife

Last week in Lagos, the @WellbeingAfrica Froundation convened the Final Quarterly Stakeholder Review Meeting of Project Oscar – Light for Life, our neonatal jaundice screening, treatment, and kernicterus prevention programme, at the Skills Lab Centre of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital @LUTHOfficial, to review progress, validate outcomes, and align with frontline partners and health leadership on the next phase of policy scale and long-term sustainability. Delivered in social impact partnership with @ThisIsReckitt, with technical collaboration from @NEST360Org and @SCIDaR_, and in close coordination with Lagos Sate Ministry of Health @LSMOH, @LagosPHCB, Primary Health Care leadership, and public health facilities, this partnership model reflects deliberate alignment between global evidence, national priorities, and facility-level practice. In Lagos State, Project Oscar – Light for Life has demonstrated the impact of embedding standardised neonatal jaundice care within routine newborn services. To date, 9,151 newborns have been screened, enabling earlier identification and timely clinical action; 987 infants have been identified with elevated bilirubin levels, 325 have been referred through structured hub-and-spoke pathways, and 937 have received prompt treatment, supported by 290 trained healthcare workers, functional diagnostic and phototherapy capacity, and harmonised screening and referral protocols across participating facilities. Across the wider programme health education footprint, Project Oscar – Light for Life has engaged 74 health facilities across 5 States, and delivered structured education to over 107,762 pregnant women and nursing mothers, strengthening early recognition, appropriate care-seeking behaviour, and continuity of care from household to facility. As Project Oscar – Light for Life transitions from implementation into institutionalisation, neonatal jaundice management must move from project to practice, sustained through policy and financing, to safeguard newborn lives from the earliest light. #ProjectOscar #LightForLife  #WellbeingForAll #FrontlineFriday

Structured partnerships between the governments and the private sector can translate fragmented corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives and private-sector interventions into tangible gains to accelerate Nigeria’s basic education outcomes. With more than 10 million children out of school, a structured collaboration that harnesses private sector resources, influence and networks is critically needed. Acknowledging this, the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) designed a Public Private Engagement and Partnership Framework to steer private-sector involvement in basic education. To validate and codify this framework, the UBEC Private Sector Engagement team, in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), hosted a three-day workshop in Lagos between February 9 and 11, 2026. SCIDaR was pleased to participate in the workshop alongside representatives from the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Social Mobilisation Officers from Abia, Bayelsa, Niger, and Lagos; State School-Based Management Committee (SBMC) Officers; the Oando Foundation; the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education (NCAOOSCE); the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF); and FCDO PLANE. Over the three-day workshop, participants: - Mapped potential private-sector partners and innovative engagement models. - Designed governance structures and defined accountability mechanisms. - Assessed risks and developed mitigation strategies. -Reached consensus on a shared vision to institutionalise the PPEP Framework nationwide. With this successful engagement, UBEC is well positioned to strengthen partnerships with the private sector to accelerate impact in line with its strategic goals of reducing the number of out-of-school children, and improving learning outcomes. SCIDaR remains committed to advancing human capital development in Nigeria, with a strong focus on education as a pathway to better life chances for vulnerable and out-of-school children. #SCIDaRImpact #BasicEducation #PublicPrivatePartnerships #EducationReform #QualityEducation

As part of ongoing efforts to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes, SCIDaR joined partners from 10–12 February 2026 for a series of project inception meetings marking the start of the 10 Million Safer Births Project, a five-year, multi-country initiative under the patronage of Queen Mary of Denmark. The project is funded by the Maternity Fund, aimed at accelerating safer births across Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, Tanzania, and Ethiopia. The 10 Million Safer Births Project, is a five-year, multi-country initiative to accelerate progress toward safer pregnancies and childbirth across Sub-Saharan Africa. Click here to read more: scidar.org/scidar-launche…

@grantsobi1 Dear Grant, Thank you for reaching out. Kindly apply using this link: scidar.org/work-with-us/ Best Regards

Happy Valentine's Day to you guys too. Do you have an opening for an educationist in your organization? I want to work with you people.

Love is care. It’s commitment and the work we do together to make life better for others. Today, we celebrate the people behind our drive for impact and the communities that inspire our work every day. Happy Valentine’s Day from all of us at SCIDaR. 💌 #SCIDaRImpact #ValentinesDay

Abi Jibrin has learned to look beyond the big numbers and see the real stories they represent. In this episode of the One Thing Series, Abi shares why data should never be just figures on a dashboard. For her, adding human context changes everything. It sharpens how we understand public health challenges and reminds us that behind every statistic is a person, a family, a community. When you see the people behind the numbers, your work becomes more intentional and more impactful. Tap to watch and hear her story. More weekly reflections from the SCIDaR team are coming your way this season on the One Thing Series. #SCIDaRImpact #OneThingSeries