Borno state commences vaccination of 2.5 million children against polio

The Borno State Government, in partnership with the World Health Organisation, has flagged off polio vaccination, targeting 2,506,233 children across the state. The Outbreak Response Vaccination Campaign is targeted at children 0-59 months across 26 local government areas of the state.

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The Executive Director of the Borno State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Professor Mohammed Alhaji, revealed that the polio programme in the state was able to interrupt the transmission of the Circulating variant Polio Virus (cVP2).

“It has been 13 months without a case of cVP2 in Borno State. We will continue to work as a team to sustain polio-free status,” he added.

Prof. Alhaji decried the current low level of routine immunisation carried out in the state, noting that it made the children highly vulnerable to polio.

Meanwhile, the Borno State Coordinator, WHO, Dr. Ibrahim Salisu, thanked the state government for its strong leadership and commitment, and for giving health the topmost priority.

He said the current immunisation campaign was aimed at eliminating the risk of transmission of all forms of the poliovirus and to boost immunisation coverage in the state.

“Our partnership with the Borno State government, and relevant stakeholders, has resulted in a successful planning and deployment of necessary resources for the campaign to commence,” Salisu said.

Wumi/Punch