He assured the World Health Organisation and the global community that the Federal Government would ensure that immunisation and surveillance activities continue across Nigeria to keep the country polio-free.
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It was in July 2014 when the last case of wild poliovirus was reported in Nigeria and since then all laboratory data have confirmed that it has been full 12 months without any new cases.
Nigeria’s success ought to serve as a lesson to the two remaining polio endemic countries – Afghanistan and Pakistan – where the Taliban attempt to control people by harassing and killing vaccination workers.
While there is no way to cure polio, it can be prevented with vaccines.
Thirty years ago children in a 125 countries were affected by the virus, spread by poor sanitation and contaminated water.
It has also had to overcome rumors the vaccine caused infertility, leading to many parents, particularly in the Muslim-majority north, refusing to have their children immunized. After 3 years have passed without a case of wild poliovirus on the continent, official “certification” of polio eradication will be conducted at the regional level in Africa.
It’ll be two more years before Africa is declared polio-free. Nigerian leaders have been photographed giving oral polio drops to their own children or grandchildren, Funsho said.
“It’s a great example of innovation and putting in good practice that worked in Nigeria to Pakistan”, she said.
It observed further that more than 200,000 volunteers across the country had repeatedly immunised more than 45 million children under the age of five years. Nigeria has been praised for its use of technology to identify vaccination gaps as well as its creation of emergency operations centers to tackle outbreaks.
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Numerous approaches that worked in Nigeria – such as health camps – were pioneered in India and are now being used in Pakistan and Afghanistan, said Rotary’s Carol Pandak. Previous year the number was 182. In 2013 nine vaccinators were shot dead in Kano.
