LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT REFUNDS 145 FORMER SUBSCRIBERS OF EGAN HOUSING ESTATE
admin - 3,595,461 children vaccinated against measles
A Polio Outbreak Response (OBR), sponsored by the Lagos State government, will hold from January 18 to 22 as part of efforts to safeguard the successes recorded in 2020 against the Wild Polio Virus (WPV).
Supervising Permanent Secretary in the State Primary Health Care Board, Dr. Abimbola Bowale, during a news conference, warned that the country is vulnerable to reinfection by the WPV, especially with the recent outbreak of wild polio-virus type 1 in Malawi and Mozambique.
He recalled that the Lagos State government began the year 2024 Measles and Yellow Fever Integrated vaccination campaign on October 19.
“The Integrated Supplemental Immunisation Activities (SIA) campaign was a landmark public health intervention aimed at addressing gaps in immunization coverage, and curbing the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases.
“This comprehensive campaign targeted measles, yellow fever, and Human Papilloma-virus (HPV), prioritising high-risk populations and leveraging innovative strategies to maximize impact.
“The safeguarding of lives remains a priority of the Lagos State government. And to ensure the state remains free from the burden of all Vaccine-Preventable Diseases, the government, in collaboration with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, will implement a Polio Outbreak Response in all local government areas to maintain the country’s polio-free status following the certification received in August 2020,” he added.
The permanent secretary also noted that the Polio Outbreak Response campaign is necessary to ‘prevent a setback in our laudable achievements and maintain the country’s polio-free status’.
To speak to the success of the campaign against Measles and Yellow Fever, 3,595,461 children were vaccinated against measles, representing 85 per cent coverage, while 20,366,405 Lagosians received the yellow fever vaccine, representing a 95 per cent coverage, while 163,553 eligible persons were vaccinated against HPV.
He added: “These efforts were bolstered by large-scale social mobilization activities, which reached over 21 million people and strengthened health systems through enhanced cold chain capacity and workforce training.”
Dr Bowale enumerated some of the challenges faced during the campaign, which included delays in logistic funding and vaccine supply which disrupted timelines, limited cold chain storage and infrastructure, which posed operational constraints among others.
However, the campaign’s achievements provided a robust framework for future integrated immunization efforts, she noted.
“Sadly, some states are still detecting cases and isolating another variant of polio-virus from both human and environmental sources. If we become complacent, the entire country is vulnerable to re-infection by the WPV, especially with a recent outbreak of Type I in Malawi and Mozambique.
“Therefore, every state must maintain its zero WPV status and halt the transmission of circulating variant polio-virus type 2 (cVPV2) by conducting high-quality campaigns and improving routine immunization coverage to ensure high population immunity as a deterrent against any reinfection of the WPV,” he added.
