By Asma’u Ahmad
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), say they are targeting 18.6 million people to be vaccinated against yellow fever disease in five states and the FCT.
The vaccination exercise is to commence on November 22.
Mrs. Margaret Soyemi, UNICEF Communications and Development Officer, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja, at a one-day Media Orientation forum for Yellow Fever Preventive Mass Vaccination Campaign.
Mrs. Margaret Soyemi
Soyemi listed the states to be covered to include Kebbi, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto and the FCT.
“We have about 20 million doses of the Yellow Fever Vaccines for the exercise scheduled for Nov. 22 – Dec. 1, 2018.
“The targeted age group is from nine months to 44 years,” she said, adding that the vaccination would be free, safe and effective.
“Our goal is to prevent the deadly disease from ravaging the populace,’’ she declared.
She called on parents and guardians to take advantage of the vaccination exercise, and stressed the determination to reduce Yellow Fever transmission in Nigeria by at least 90 per cent.
Soyemi described as “very unfortunate”, recent reports of Yellow Fever outbreak in some states like Ekiti, Benue, Anambra, FCT, Nassarawa, Niger and Plateau.
Other states, she said, included Kaduna, Sokoto and Jigawa.
“Prevention is better than cure; we must all unite to rid Nigeria of the disease,” she stated.
Soyemi said that the media had a critical role to play in the campaign against the deadly disease, and advised reporters to enlighten the public on its danger and the need to prevent it.
She promised that the fight against the disease would be a continuous one until the disease was completely eradicated in Nigeria.
