The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has revealed that Nigeria has an estimated two million ‘zero-dose’ children, who are substantially at risk of contracting diseases like polio, due to lack of vaccination.
The Chief of the UNICEF Field Office in Kano, Rahama Farah made this known at the commemoration of World Polio Day.
He lamented that despite the progress made in improving immunisation coverage, Nigeria continues to face challenges in getting all eligible children vaccinated.
“For instance, across Kano, Jigawa and Katsina states, we have a total of over half a million, 556,750, Zero-Dose children: Kano -280,281; Katsina – 171,491; and Jigawa -104,978.
“These are children who should be vaccinated but have never received Penta 3 or one single dose of vaccination,” he said.
He called on the Nigerian government to improve its commitment to ensuring that children across the country do not lack polio vaccination.
Farah emphasised that a collective effort is crucial to achieving polio eradication goals while calling for strong commitment and leadership from various stakeholders, including the government, traditional and religious leaders, health workers, influencers, actors, and the media.
Farah also stressed the importance of adequate funding for the health sector, particularly during polio vaccination campaigns.
He urged local government chairmen to actively support immunization activities, supervise polio eradication efforts, and participate in review meetings to ensure every child in their local government area receives vaccination.
World Polio Day is celebrated annually on October 24. This year’s theme, “A Global Mission to Reach Every Child,” focuses on the continued efforts to ensure all children are vaccinated against polio, particularly in regions where the virus remains a threat.
