Over one million doses of polio vaccines, have arrived in Plateau state in preparation for the second round of outbreak response, commencing from Saturday nineteenth to Tuesday twenty-second February 2022.
UNICEF vaccine specialist, Gbubemi Jack-Domi, while supervising the distribution to the seventeen local government areas, at the Jos North local government cold room says enough vaccines were supplied to the state with the National Primary Healthcare development agency sending over one million doses while their target population is nine hundred thousand children to be immunized over four days.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria National Polio Plus Committee of Rotary international district nine one two five presented five hundred aprons for use by immunization teams in Jos North and Jos South local government areas to enhance the visibility of immunizers and further reduce rejection.
Receiving the aprons Chairman Jos North Local government Shehu Bala Usman says his administration will collaborate with Rotary clubs in Plateau state to sustain the eradication of polio virus and other diseases in the locality.
Usman commended the Rotarians for working tirelessly in assisting government in the campaign to eradicate polio and other diseases in the area noting that due to the heterogeneous nature of Jos North, his administration has taken steps to enhance Service delivery of Primary Health Care centers in the area to ensure smooth, effective and efficient immunization of children from zero to five years thus prevent a resurgence of polio virus in Jos North thereby making the area polio free.
” when you talk about Jos North then you talk about the entirety of the state is smiling, we want to thank you very much, i want to say that our doors are wide open to partner with you to enhance our services especially humanitarian services we can see areas that we can partner with you since you have the structure in place we can reach places and deliver services to the people, one word of proviceding services to the people is social services, one word, organizations such as yours will help us deliver services to the people, our doors are open so we can see the opportunities so we can partner with you” Bala says.
Chairman of Jos South local government area, Gideon Dandereng represented by the council’s secretary Alexander Chukwak says the aprons are timely as immunization teams made a request as a means of identification when they go into the communities.
He says the local government area would collaborate with Rotarians in Plateau state to meet some needs of the people in the areas of peace and conflict resolution, maternal and child care, and the environment.
Mr.
Chukwak says Rotarians have supported Jos south local government with school supplies for children and provision of clean water in some communities for which the administration is grateful.
“We have had complains about the issues of identification and the council had resolved to produce these aprons before the next round, we are happy, it is our luck that Rotary deemed it fit to support us, we want to say thank you, we cannot appreciate you enough personally I know what Rotary is doing in this country”.
Victoria Bonaventure on behalf of Rotary International explains that the immunization round is necessary to fortify children fro zero to five years against the polio virus in spite of Africa being certified polio free because Afghanistan and Pakistan are yet to be certified polio free.
Bonaventure explained that the aprons are for use by immunization teams to enhance their visibility and acceptance during house to house immunization adding that Rotarians would also monitor the immunization exercise from Saturday the nineteenth to Tuesday the twenty-second.
A total of five hundred aprons were present to the Jos north and Jos south local government areas with each having two hundred and fifty aprons.
Rotary international through its over two hundred clubs that make up district nine one two five in twenty three states plus the federal capital territory support immunization efforts under the polio eradication initiative in diverse ways.
Polio eradication is Rotary’s major global health programme which began over thirty-five years ago and cost billions of naira as the organization keeps its promise of raising children in a polio free world.
Okwuego
1 Million Vaccine doses for Polio eradication in Plateau state