Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, and the 7th largest country in the world. With nearly half of the population under 18 years old, a record number of young people will enter reproductive age in the next decade. Currently, 45 million Nigerian women are of reproductive age and maternal mortality is high, at a rate of 917 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. In 2018, 19% of Nigerian women reported an unmet need for family planning, while the modern contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) was only 12%, according to the Nigeria Demographic & Health Survey 2018.
Since its establishment in 2012, DKT Nigeria’s nimble approach to social marketing has increased accessibility and availability of contraceptives across Nigeria. DKT Nigeria’s contraceptive and family planning services reach the poor, rural and adolescent populations who have limited access to reproductive health services. DKT is the largest private provider of reproductive health products and services in Nigeria.
DKT Nigeria distributes contraceptives nationally and can deliver contraceptives within 24 hours to any part of Nigeria. DKT’s direct sales to providers through its network of medical sales representatives has made contraceptives more easily accessible and affordable.
DKT believes that community health workers can drastically improve family planning awareness and accessibility in Nigeria. DKT trains doctors, nurses, midwives, pharmacists, community health workers and patent and proprietary medicine vendors. DKT also trains providers on counseling and administration of contraceptives, including insertion and removal of IUDs and implants.
DKT operates a dedicated toll-free family planning call center that provides comprehensive information on reproductive health services to callers, from product information to management of side effects, clinic referrals, and follow-up calls. It operates on the shortcode number – 55059. Call center operators make referrals to partner clinics—service delivery points that are selected based on their strong capacity to provide reproductive health services. These clinics offer OB/GYN, antenatal and postnatal care (medical care during and after pregnancy), and child immunization, and are typically selected based on their location and a high volume of patient traffic.
DKT Nigeria hosts a youth-friendly website, Honey&Banana, to create awareness for family planning, amplify user testimonials and directly engage with potential or current contraceptive users, most of whom are young people.
