By Asma’u Ahmad
The United Nations Children’s Education Fund (UNICEF) has solicited the support of the Niger State Government and the media to create more awareness on public health.
The Consultant Communication for Development on Routine Immunisation at UNICEF, Malam Sani Mohammed, made the appeal during a partners’ media meeting on routine immunisation, in collaboration with the state
Primary Health Care Development Agency in Minna on Monday.
Malam Mohammed identified lack of political commitment, government support and inadequate dissemination of information as the causes of inaccessibility of routine immunisation by some local government areas in the state.
He said that data had shown that some local government areas in the state did not partake in routine immunisation and utilisation in the first and second quarters of 2017.
He listed Agaie, Agwara, Gbako, Lapai, Magama, Mariga, Mashegu and Paikoro as local governments that did not access routine immunisation in the first quarter of 2017, while Mashegu, Mokwa, Munya, Rafi, Rijau and Shiroro missed the second quarter.
He named Agwara, Paikoro and Mashegu local government areas as those that missed both the first and second quarters of 2017.
The UNICEF official called for political will on the part of top government officials in the state to help campaigns in sustaining the exercise and not only during polio campaigns.
Earlier, the Executive Director of the state primary healthcare development agency, Dr Yahaya Na’uzo, explained that the objective of the forum was for the media and other partners to deliberate on how to improve healthcare delivery in the state.
Dr Na’uzo, who was represented by the Deputy Director, Health Promotion of the agency, Alhaji Mu’azu Naza, said the forum was also to equip the media with adequate knowledge on the expanded programme on immunisation and other healthcare deliveries.
