By Salami Abdulrahaman | Abuja
ABUJA — Stakeholders in Nigeria’s communication, development and social sectors have called for stronger collaboration and collective action to advance Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) and promote sustainable, positive change across the country.
The call was made at the “Collectively Inspiring SBCC in Nigeria” Post-SBCC Summit Event, which convened communication professionals, development practitioners and other stakeholders to discuss the future of SBCC in Nigeria.
The event featured a panel discussion with Bako Kantiok of the Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI), Halima Buba of SCDaR, Samson Odukogbe of AREH, and Foyeke Oyedokun-Adebayo of the Population Council.
Bako Kantiok, a strategic SBCC expert and certified project manager with experience in risk communication, demand generation and capacity strengthening, emphasised the importance of strategic partnerships in achieving sustainable behavioural change.
He noted that effective SBCC interventions require the active involvement of communities, civil society organisations, faith-based groups, the media and health systems.
Halima Buba stressed the need for organisations and development partners to adopt a more intentional and coordinated approach to addressing the multiple challenges facing adolescents and communities.
She explained that issues such as girl-child education, access to family planning services, maternal health, poverty and other social challenges are interconnected and should not be addressed in isolation.
“An adolescent girl facing challenges in accessing education may also be dealing with social, economic and health-related difficulties within her home and community,” she said.
Buba called on organisations working with the same target populations to collaborate and develop holistic interventions.
“If different organisations are targeting the same community with different interventions, there is a need to work together and engage the community collectively, rather than treating interconnected issues separately,” she said.
Samson Odukogbe highlighted the need to strengthen the relationship between communities, health systems and other stakeholders. He stressed that effective SBCC interventions should respond to community realities while improving access to essential services.
He also called for stronger government involvement and improved coordination among stakeholders to achieve sustainable behavioural change.
Foyeke Oyedokun-Adebayo underscored the importance of evidence-based communication, stressing that practitioners and development partners must listen to communities and ensure that programmes are inclusive, culturally relevant and responsive to people’s needs.
Buba further emphasised the critical role of government in driving interventions in essential health services, education, poverty alleviation and agriculture.
She urged development partners and practitioners to strengthen engagement with relevant government institutions and transparently share community insights to help inform policies and future development plans.
The panelists collectively highlighted partnerships, innovation, evidence-based communication and meaningful community participation as essential to achieving lasting social and behavioural change.
Participants were encouraged to strengthen cross-sector collaboration and adopt culturally relevant approaches that respond to the realities and needs of the communities they serve.
The Post-SBCC Summit provided a platform for stakeholders to reflect on existing interventions, share experiences and explore new pathways for advancing SBCC in Nigeria.
The event reinforced the message that sustainable social and behavioural transformation requires collective action, stronger partnerships, shared learning and meaningful community engagement.
