Plans have been concluded by Kano State government North Western Nigeria to vaccinate 3.6 million Children with the novel type 2 oral polio vaccine (nOPV2).
The measure is in response to the outbreak of circulating vaccine drive poliovirus type 2 (cVVDPV2) in the state.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Aminu Tsanyawa disclosed this at the unveiling the Maternal Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW) campaign to reduce the increasing rate of mortality.
DR Tsanyawa said the integrated OBRI and MNCHW campaigns would run concurrently from Sunday 9th and Thursday 13th of January 2022, with over N2.5 billion to be spent on both exercises.
He explained that ”the improved and genetically stable vaccine become necessary to attain the global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).”
The Commissioner stated that “three years after Nigeria was certified polio-free nation, an outbreak of circulating vaccine drive poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) was discovered in 13 states of the Federation including Kano with a record of 106 cases across 25 LGA’s.”
Dr Tsanyawa noted that the outbreak response of the vaccine to eradicate the deadly virus was in line with the national directives and guidelines from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency and the Ministry of Health.
He said; ”A major outbreak response OBRI activities were conducted the last year in the affected LGA’s of the state in line with the National directives and guidelines of NPHCDA and FMOH. The campaign is now being organised across the Federation to reach and vaccinate all eligible children in the country.
“Kano State has equally concluded all arrangements to ensure a quality outbreak response (OBR1) across all 44 LGA’s. The OBR1 activities start today Friday 7th January 2022 with the Direct Observed Polio Vaccination (DOPV) while the house to house campaign will be flag off on Sunday 9th, January 2022.”
Dr. Tsanyawa emphasised that the polio vaccines exercise would run along with the distribution of Maternal and newborn Child health intervention with the disbursement of Vitamin A supplement, Deworming, Nutritional assessment, and Free ANC drugs including hematinic Sulfur dioxide pyrimethamine and LLIN targeted at over 600 thousand mother and children under five.
He urged parents, caregivers, and pregnant women to utilise the opportunity afforded by the government to make themselves available for the interventions.
Mercy Chukwudiebere
Leave a Reply