ACHL Collaborates with Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) on Interfaith COVID 19 Response.

Africa Centre for Health Leadership and the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) have fine-tuned arrangements to collaborate on strengthening the capacity of faith-based organizations to effectively respond to the COVID 19 response. The collaboration is to enhance the implementation of the Enabling Faith Based Response to COVID 19 project which is supported by KAICIID. In a meeting on the 2^nd of June, 2021 at the Conference Room of the NSCIA in Abuja, the two organizations resolved to work together on

• Strengthening the capacity of FBOs to be more active infectious diseases through designating health desk officers across faith-based groups and training them to institutionalize and coordinate preventive measures against infections disease in their institutions.
• Developing Interfaith COVID 19 guidelines for the country based on NCDC and WHO protocols and guidelines.
• Increasing awareness on COVID-19 and other infectious diseases through sustained information, education and communication strategies to make healthy behaviors and lifestyles a way of life among faith congregations.

The President-General of the National Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs is HRH the Sultan of Sokoto, Alh. SaádAbubakar while the Secretary General is Prof. Is’haqOleyede. The Director of Administration, Arch. Zubairu Haruna with the NSCIA team hosted the meeting on behalf of the NSCIA leadership, while the Executive Director of ACHL, Dr. Godwin Asuquo led his technical team to the meeting. Dr. Asuquo presented the overview of the EFBR project in which he highlighted ongoing activities to include:

• To identify and train all desk officer in FBOs on IPC.
• To develop the interfaith COVID 19 Response guidelines
• To compile and produce policy briefs to use for advocacy to key policy makers
• To produce communication material for sensitization and education of key stakeholders.

The Expected Outputs from these interventions will be measured in terms of

• Number of desk officers trained
• Development of Faith-Based guidelines on COVID-19
• Number of Faith Leaders who make positive statements about COVID 19 preventive measures.
• Number and types of new resources mobilized for faith-based response to COVID 19

In his response, the Director of Administration pledged to work together with ACHL to achieve the objectives of the project. He updated on current efforts by the NSCIA in contributing to the response to include developing NSCIA response guidelines to COVID 19, organizing sensitization and town hall meetings, and various communique and statement issued by the council on COVID 19.

Others in attendance at the meeting included: Oladipupo Khadijah/ NSCIA, Aselemi Ibrahim/NSCIA, IshaqAbdulganiyu/NSCIA, AbubakarAkande/NSCIA, Deborah Ayoola/ ACHL, Jerry Edet/ ACHL.