By Asmau Ahmad
The Sultan Foundation for Peace and Development said it has commenced training of 38 traditional rulers on strategic campaign modalities to ensure maximum immunization coverage in Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States.
The Senior Programme Officer of SFPD, Mr. Haruna Aliyu, said the three-day event is a step-down training, supported by the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), preparatory for the November 2023 Immunization campaign.
He said participants were immunization focal persons from the emirate councils in the three states expected to educate their subjects toward successful immunization exercises.
According to him, the exercise was to strengthen the capacity of emirates’ focal persons to resolve immunization challenges such as rejections, non-compliance and other communal challenges during the campaigns.
In his presentation, the National Director of the Programme of SFPD, Dr Aminu Inuwa, said the effort was a sequel to the traditional rulers’ engagement on immunization gaps in communities and other challenges in the three states.
He explained that the training was for ‘Fractional-dose Inactivated Poliovirus (FIPV), Novel Polio Vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) and Sub National Immunization Plus Days (SNIPDs) campaign strategies meant to strengthen Routine Immunisation and campaigns modalities in the affected areas.
He dwelt on immunisation performance and risk factors in the communities, outbreak transmission, strategies for improving uptake, the importance of daily meetings and strategies for resolving non-compliance cases.
Dr Inuwa underscored the importance of data collection, and presentation as well as the role of house-to-house and social mobilizations, communication techniques and supervision.
Dr Victor Gugong, spoke with participants on the roles of traditional rulers in setting up vaccination posts, vaccination team composition and selection as well as strategies for resolving disagreements.
In his remark, the Chairman of the Sultanate Council’s Committee on Health, Alhaji Aliyu Attahiru, reiterated the Sultanate Council’s commitment to harness the Northern Traditional Leaders Committee on Primary Healthcare, SFPD and other agencies’ efforts to enhance immunization activities.
Alhaji Attahiru, who is Galadiman Garin Sokoto, described the training as important, as it recognises the situation of community challenges, saying, “it is the best solution to solve issues on immunization hitches.”
