Effiom, who spoke during a family planning webinar organised by MSION in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health, said the consumption of key family planning commodities doubled as a result of increased demand for sexual and reproductive health services during the lockdown.

In his presentation entitled "MSION Perspective: "Sustaining Family Planning & Sexual Reproductive Health Services Delivery amid COVID-19 Pandemic", Effiom said client visits to supported facilities increased by 22 percent during the COVID-19 outbreak.

"We witnessed increased client visit and service uptake in the three months of COVID-19 and despite the lockdown and movement restrictions, MSION frontline health workers in 2,345 public health facilities, 167 community-based delivery Network of Marie Stopes Ladies, 220 social franchise, three MSI centres of excellence and 23 mobile outreach teams have continued to provide services.

He said there was a sharp decline in the uptake of family planning services during the lockdown as a result of the non-availability of Personal Protective Equipments, PPEs, at family planning service delivery points, posing a potential increased risk of contracting COVID-19 by health care workers and family planning clients.

According to him, services were interrupted at tertiary, secondary and primary health facilities due restrictions on movement to contain the spread of COVID-19 even as incidences of stock-outs of commodities were recorded,

"Reproductive health and family planning services were not prioritised in the initial COVID-19 response plan at national and state levels while guidelines were lacking in protocols to be followed in offering services.