Monitoring and evaluation of education in Nigeria: challenges and ways forwards

The article discusses the challenges preventing effective monitoring and evaluation of education in Nigeria. Secondary data was used to support the points raised in the article. The secondary data were sourced from print material and online publication by recognized institutions and individual author. There are many challenges militating against effective monitoring and evaluation of educational programme in Nigeria. Some of the challenges include; inadequate funding of monitoring and evaluation programmme, inadequate professional monitoring and evaluating officers, poor capacity development of monitoring and evaluating officers, corruptions, insecurity, inadequate monitoring and evaluation tools, political instability and lack of political support. To solve this challenges, this article recommends the following:  the government should provide: adequate funding for monitoring and evaluation programmme, employment of more professional evaluator and monitors, constant capacity development programme for  monitoring and evaluating officers, fight all institution corruption, provide security for Monitoring and Evaluating officers, provide adequate monitoring and evaluation tools, ensure political stability and the political officeholders should support the activities of monitoring and evaluation in the country

Improving the quality of routine maternal and newborn data captured in primary health facilities in Gombe State, Northeastern Nigeria: a before-and-after study.

OBJECTIVES: Primary objective: to assess nine data quality metrics for 14 maternal and newborn health data elements, following implementation of an integrated, district-focused data quality intervention. SECONDARY OBJECTIVE: to consider whether assessing the data quality metrics beyond completeness and accuracy of facility reporting offered new insight into reviewing routine data quality. DESIGN: Before-and-after study design. SETTING: Primary health facilities in Gombe State, Northeastern Nigeria. PARTICIPANTS: Monitoring and evaluation officers and maternal, newborn and child health coordinators for state-level and all 11 local government areas (district-equivalent) overseeing 492 primary care facilities offering maternal and newborn care services. INTERVENTION: Between April 2017 and December 2018, we implemented an integrated data quality intervention which included: introduction of job aids and regular self-assessment of data quality, peer-review and feedback, learning workshops, work planning for improvement, and ongoing support through social media. OUTCOME MEASURES: 9 metrics for the data quality dimensions of completeness and timeliness, internal consistency of reported data, and external consistency. RESULTS: The data quality intervention was associated with improvements in seven of nine data quality metrics assessed including availability and timeliness of reporting, completeness of data elements, accuracy of facility reporting, consistency between related data elements, and frequency of outliers reported. Improvement differed by data element type, with content of care and commodity-related data improving more than contact-related data. Increases in the consistency between related data elements demonstrated improved internal consistency within and across facility documentation. CONCLUSIONS: An integrated district-focused data quality intervention-including regular self-assessment of data quality, peer-review and feedback, learning workshops, work planning for improvement, and ongoing support through social media-can increase the completeness, accuracy and internal consistency of facility-based routine data

Quality of routine facility data for monitoring priority maternal and newborn indicators in DHIS2: A case study from Gombe State, Nigeria.

INTRODUCTION: Routine health information systems are critical for monitoring service delivery. District Heath Information System, version 2 (DHIS2) is an open source software platform used in more than 60 countries, on which global initiatives increasingly rely for such monitoring. We used facility-reported data in DHIS2 for Gombe State, north-eastern Nigeria, to present a case study of data quality to monitor priority maternal and neonatal health indicators. METHODS: For all health facilities in DHIS2 offering antenatal and postnatal care services (n = 497) and labor and delivery services (n = 486), we assessed the quality of data for July 2016-June 2017 according to the World Health Organization data quality review guidance. Using data from DHIS2 as well as external facility-level and population-level household surveys, we reviewed three data quality dimensions-completeness and timeliness, internal consistency, and external consistency-and considered the opportunities for improvement. RESULTS: Of 14 priority maternal and neonatal health indicators that could be tracked through facility-based data, 12 were included in Gombe's DHIS2. During July 2016-June 2017, facility-reported data in DHIS2 were incomplete at least 40% of the time, under-reported 10%-60% of the events documented in facility registers, and showed inconsistencies over time, between related indicators, and with an external data source. The best quality data elements were those that aligned with Gombe's health program priorities, particularly older health programs, and those that reflected contact indicators rather than indicators related to the provision of commodities or content of care. CONCLUSION: This case study from Gombe State, Nigeria, demonstrates the high potential for effective monitoring of maternal and neonatal health using DHIS2. However, coordinated action at multiple levels of the health system is needed to maximize reporting of existing data; rationalize data flow; routinize data quality review, feedback, and supervision; and ensure ongoing maintenance of DHIS2

Monitoring childbirth care in primary health facilities: a validity study in Gombe State, northeastern Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Improving the quality of facility-based births is a critical strategy for reducing the high burden of maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity across all settings. Accurate data on childbirth care is essential for monitoring progress. In northeastern Nigeria, we assessed the validity of childbirth care indicators in a rural primary health care context, as documented by health workers and reported by women at different recall periods. METHODS: We compared birth observations (gold standard) to: (i) facility exit interviews with observed women; (ii) household follow-up interviews 9-22 months after childbirth; and (iii) health worker documentation in the maternity register. We calculated sensitivity, specificity, and area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) to determine individual-level reporting accuracy. We calculated the inflation factor (IF) to determine population-level validity. RESULTS: Twenty-five childbirth care indicators were assessed to validate health worker documentation and women's self-reports. During exit interviews, women's recall had high validity (AUC≥0.70 and 0.75<IF<1.25) for 9 of 20 indicators assessed; six additional indicators met either AUC or IF criteria for validity. During follow-up interviews, women's recall had high validity for one of 15 indicators assessed, placing the newborn skin-to-skin; two additional indicators met IF criteria only. Health worker documentation had high validity for four of 10 indicators assessed; three additional indicators met AUC or IF criteria. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to standard household surveys, monitoring of facility-based childbirth care should consider drawing from and linking multiple data sources, including routine health facility data and exit interviews with recently delivered women

Effect of early tranexamic acid administration on mortality, hysterectomy, and other morbidities in women with post-partum haemorrhage (WOMAN): an international, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Post-partum haemorrhage is the leading cause of maternal death worldwide. Early administration of tranexamic acid reduces deaths due to bleeding in trauma patients. We aimed to assess the effects of early administration of tranexamic acid on death, hysterectomy, and other relevant outcomes in women with post-partum haemorrhage. Methods In this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, we recruited women aged 16 years and older with a clinical diagnosis of post-partum haemorrhage after a vaginal birth or caesarean section from 193 hospitals in 21 countries. We randomly assigned women to receive either 1 g intravenous tranexamic acid or matching placebo in addition to usual care. If bleeding continued after 30 min, or stopped and restarted within 24 h of the first dose, a second dose of 1 g of tranexamic acid or placebo could be given. Patients were assigned by selection of a numbered treatment pack from a box containing eight numbered packs that were identical apart from the pack number. Participants, care givers, and those assessing outcomes were masked to allocation. We originally planned to enrol 15 000 women with a composite primary endpoint of death from all-causes or hysterectomy within 42 days of giving birth. However, during the trial it became apparent that the decision to conduct a hysterectomy was often made at the same time as randomisation. Although tranexamic acid could influence the risk of death in these cases, it could not affect the risk of hysterectomy. We therefore increased the sample size from 15 000 to 20 000 women in order to estimate the effect of tranexamic acid on the risk of death from post-partum haemorrhage. All analyses were done on an intention-to-treat basis. This trial is registered with ISRCTN76912190 (Dec 8, 2008); ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT00872469; and PACTR201007000192283. Findings Between March, 2010, and April, 2016, 20 060 women were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive tranexamic acid (n=10 051) or placebo (n=10 009), of whom 10 036 and 9985, respectively, were included in the analysis. Death due to bleeding was significantly reduced in women given tranexamic acid (155 [1·5%] of 10 036 patients vs 191 [1·9%] of 9985 in the placebo group, risk ratio [RR] 0·81, 95% CI 0·65–1·00; p=0·045), especially in women given treatment within 3 h of giving birth (89 [1·2%] in the tranexamic acid group vs 127 [1·7%] in the placebo group, RR 0·69, 95% CI 0·52–0·91; p=0·008). All other causes of death did not differ significantly by group. Hysterectomy was not reduced with tranexamic acid (358 [3·6%] patients in the tranexamic acid group vs 351 [3·5%] in the placebo group, RR 1·02, 95% CI 0·88–1·07; p=0·84). The composite primary endpoint of death from all causes or hysterectomy was not reduced with tranexamic acid (534 [5·3%] deaths or hysterectomies in the tranexamic acid group vs 546 [5·5%] in the placebo group, RR 0·97, 95% CI 0·87-1·09; p=0·65). Adverse events (including thromboembolic events) did not differ significantly in the tranexamic acid versus placebo group. Interpretation Tranexamic acid reduces death due to bleeding in women with post-partum haemorrhage with no adverse effects. When used as a treatment for postpartum haemorrhage, tranexamic acid should be given as soon as possible after bleeding onset. Funding London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Pfizer, UK Department of Health, Wellcome Trust, and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Emergence and spread of two SARS-CoV-2 variants of interest in Nigeria.

Identifying the dissemination patterns and impacts of a virus of economic or health importance during a pandemic is crucial, as it informs the public on policies for containment in order to reduce the spread of the virus. In this study, we integrated genomic and travel data to investigate the emergence and spread of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.318 and B.1.525 (Eta) variants of interest in Nigeria and the wider Africa region. By integrating travel data and phylogeographic reconstructions, we find that these two variants that arose during the second wave in Nigeria emerged from within Africa, with the B.1.525 from Nigeria, and then spread to other parts of the world. Data from this study show how regional connectivity of Nigeria drove the spread of these variants of interest to surrounding countries and those connected by air-traffic. Our findings demonstrate the power of genomic analysis when combined with mobility and epidemiological data to identify the drivers of transmission, as bidirectional transmission within and between African nations are grossly underestimated as seen in our import risk index estimates

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

AN INVESTIGATION INTO PROBLEMS FACING PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS IN FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY, ABUJA, NIGERIA

This paper investigated the problems facing the public secondary school administrators in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. This research work employed the survey method with the use of questionnaire. The target population of this study comprised of all school administrators of public senior secondary schools in the six area councils in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The sample size of 300 was chosen from five public secondary schools by a simple random sampling technique. Ten school administrators which include principals, Vice principals and head of departments totaling ten. Thirty public secondary school was sampled. Five from each area council in the Federal capital Territory, Abuja. Three hundred respondents were chosen from all the sample public secondary schools by a stratified sampling technique using class as strata. The research instrument used for this study was a self-developed questionnaire titled: “An Investigation into Problems facing Public Secondary School Administrators in FCT Questionnaire” (AIPFPSSAQ). The researchers employed internal consistency reliability to establish the instruments with reliability index of 0.88. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as Mean, Standard Deviation and percentage. The findings of this study revealed that inadequate funding, inadequate infrastructural facilities, shortage of professional teachers, inadequate instructional materials and overpopulation are the problems public secondary school administrators are facing in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria. Based on these findings, it was recommended amongst others, that the government should allocate more funds to educational sector to tackle the problems of inadequacies in the area of fund, infrastructural facilities and government should employ more professional teachers and deploy them to public secondary school according to schools’ request

An Investigation on the Problems Facing Planning of Education in Kogi State, Nigeria

The research investigated the problems facing the planning of education in Kogi state, Nigeria. The study was carried out in Kogi state, Nigeria. Survey design was used for the study. The simple random sampling (lottery) method was used to select 90 respondents on the basis of proportional representation. Questionnaire was adopted for data collection. The questionnaire was divided into two section. Section A and section B. A four point rating scale was adopted and is shown as follows: Strongly Agree (SA) = (4points) Agree (A) = (3 points) Disagree (D) = (2 points) Strongly Disagree (SD) = (1 point). Test retest method was used to determine the reliability of the instruments. The study used simple percentage for data analysis. The study produced the following: inadequate funding of planning programme, inadequate data ,inadequate planning tools, shortage of professional educational planners ,lack of political will to support educational planning, lack of effective capacity development programme for educational planners and political influence are the a problems facing educational planning inKogi State, Nigeria. Based on this finding, the following were recommended: government should increase the funding for educational planning in the state, employ more professional planners, provide adequate planning materials and ensure effective data generation. This will allow for effective planning of education in the state