Kwara Flags Off Under-five Measles Vaccination Campaign
Kwara State has flagged off the measles vaccination campaign for children under the age of five to reduce childhood morbidity and mortality in the state.
The Deputy Governor Kayode, Alabi Alabi, launched the campaign at the Kwara Ministry of Health in Ilorin on Friday.
He explained that measles is an acute and highly infectious disease caused by the measles virus, noting that it is one of the leading causes of illnesses and deaths among children under five years of age and that more than 17,000 measles cases are reported every year in Nigeria with thousands of cases never documented.
“As a responsible government, the Kwara Government through the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency will do everything within its power to ensure that the vaccine reaches every eligible child within the shortest possible period of time,” he added.
The deputy governor implored all mothers and caregivers to avail their children the opportunity to prevent untimely deaths through vaccine-preventable diseases.
He also encouraged parents to make their children available for the routine immunisation outreach currently ongoing across the state.
Read Also:
Alabi commended the resilience and commitment of the leadership and staff of Kwara Primary Health Care Development Agency for their unrelenting efforts to make sure that essential health services are made available in all the nooks and crannies of the state.
“I am proud of your achievements and the feat you have attained in all your immunisation campaigns this year.
“Your coming out as the best in PHC leadership challenge in the whole of the North Central zone is a big plus,” he stated.
The deputy governor gave an assurance that the state government under the leadership of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq would continue to demonstrate ownership and leadership in the health sector.
He also said that the AbdulRazaq-led administration will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that primary healthcare, which is the first contact, is strengthened to reduce gaps in equity and provide quality service delivery.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary of Kwara Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Nusirat Elelu, expressed gratitude to the governor for giving the necessary support, including the prompt payment of measles counterpart funds.
Elelu said that the last measles campaign had Kwara attaining the best performance among all implementing states across the country with a post-campaign coverage survey of 92 per cent.
She revealed that the target for this year was put at 95 per cent, saying the Kwara team intends to surpass the set target.
(NAN)
