title: Analysing key influences over actors' use of evidence in developing policies and strategies in Nigeria: a retrospective study of the Integrated Maternal Newborn and Child Health strategy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Evidence-informed policymaking has been promoted as a means of ensuring better outcomes. However, what counts as evidence in policymaking lies within a spectrum of expert knowledge and scientifically generated information. Since not all forms of evidence share an equal validity or weighting for policymakers, it is important to understand the key factors that influence their preferences for different types of evidence in policy and strategy development.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective study was carried out at the national level in Nigeria using a case-study approach to examine the Nigerian Integrated Maternal Newborn and Child Health (IMNCH) strategy. Two frameworks were used for conceptualization and data analysis, namely (1) to analyse the role of evidence in policymaking and (2) the policy triangle. They were used to explore the key contextual and participatory influences on choice of evidence in developing the IMNCH strategy. Data was collected through review of relevant national documents and in-depth interviews of purposively selected key policy and strategic decision makers. Thematic analysis was applied to generate information from collected data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The breadth of evidence used was wide, ranging from expert opinions to systematic reviews. The choice of different types of evidence was found to overlap across actor categories. Key influences over actors' choice of evidence were: (1) perceived robustness of evidence - comprehensive, representative, recent, scientifically sound; (2) roles in evidence process, i.e. their degree and level of participation in evidence generation and dissemination, with regards to their role in the policy process; and (3) contextual factors such as global agenda and influence, timeline for strategy development, availability of resources for evidence generation, and lessons learnt from previous unsuccessful policies/plans.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Actors' preferences for different types of evidence for policy are influenced not only by the characteristics of evidence itself, but on actors' roles in the evidence process, their power to influence the policy, and the context in which evidence is used.
authors.affiliation: Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria. chinyere23ng@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Chinyere O
authors.initials: CO
authors.lastname: Mbachu
authors.affiliation: Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria.|Department of Health Administration and Management, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Obinna
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Onwujekwe
authors.affiliation: Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Ifeanyi
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Chikezie
authors.affiliation: Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria.|Department of Sociology, University of Nigeria Nsukka campus, Nsukka, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Nkoli
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ezumah
authors.affiliation: Nuffield Center for International Health and Development, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Mahua
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Das
authors.affiliation: Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria.|Department of Community Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu campus, Enugu, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Benjamin S C
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Uzochukwu
mesh_terms: D000288:Administrative Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000458:organization & administration; D000067576:Child Health; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000458:organization & administration; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D000068097:Maternal Health; D009549:Nigeria; D011050:Policy Making; D012189:Retrospective Studies
keywords: Actors; Evidence; Nigeria; Policymaking; Preference