Jos: No fewer than 68,000 children are expected to be vaccinated in Plateau against polio by the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the News Agency of Nigeria reports. Ms Nuzhat Rafique, UNICEF Bauchi Field Officer, disclosed this during an advocacy visit to the Gbong Gwom Jos, Jacob Buba.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Rafique stated that a comprehensive plan was in place to vaccinate the 68,000 children through targeted interventions in high-risk areas, including Jos North, Jos South, Shendam, and Wase, as well as five additional zero-dose districts. She explained that the strategy would involve immediate catch-up activities before the April 26 to 30 campaigns, followed by a second round in December, emphasizing that this was to ensure that no child was left behind.
She further explained that mobile vaccination teams, escorted by security personnel, would reach hard-to-access and volatile areas, while traditional and religious leaders would mobilize communities to counter vaccine hesitancy. “UNICEF is partnering with local media to dispel misinformation and setting up vaccination posts in royal palaces to build trust,” she said.
Rafique also mentioned that there would be weekly follow-up visits to resistant communities and the strengthening of primary health centres to sustain routine immunization and ensure long-term protection beyond the campaign periods. She noted that the multi-faceted approach aimed not only to close the current gap but also to fortify the health system against future lapses in coverage.
In his remarks, the Plateau Commissioner for Health, Dr Nicolas Baamlung, described the statistic of 68,000 unvaccinated children as alarming and a critical public health emergency. Baamlung stated that the ministry, in partnership with the State Primary Health Care Development Agency, had already launched a catch-up immunization drive ahead of the official April 24 campaign. “We are mobilizing traditional rulers, local government chairmen, and community leaders to penetrate previously inaccessible areas,” he said.
Additionally, the Gbong Gwom Jos assured that he would immediately summon all district and village heads across Plateau to mobilize the entire traditional structure to support the polio campaign. He pledged that traditional rulers in the state would personally lead by example, including public demonstrations of vaccination to overcome cultural hesitancy.