The World Health Organization has lauded Nigeria’s commitment to attaining Wild Polio Free certification.
WHO country representative, Dr. Walter Mulombo made the acclamation at the 3rd year anniversary of Wild Poliovirus eradication in Nigeria’s capital.
He said despite the peak of the rainy season Nigerians were able to attain an 80% reduction in the burden
of cVPDV2 among AFP cases.
Dr. Walter, therefore, charged the country to see the celebration as a call to do more with a strong partnership, teamwork, and accountability to achieve the priorities of primary health care revitalization that is geared towards improving routine immunization in the country.
Walter while expressing his optimism about the WHO’s commitment to supporting the country’s crossline of polio total eradication said.“The last case of WPV was reported in Borno State in 2016. It was a case of a near miss for Nigeria to attain certification in 2016.
“Each year over 270million doses of polio vaccines were administered
“Greater investments and efforts were made to reach vulnerable populations – the nomads, non-complaints, hard-to-reach populations, riverine populations, and those in areas affected by conflicts.
“Nigeria became the template for the Global Polio Programme for innovations, best practices and demonstration of leadership and ownership at national and subnational levels.”
Meanwhile, the UNICEF Chief of Health in Nigeria Eduardo Celades, commended the Nigerian government for their relentless effort to eradicate wild poliovirus, thus pledging the UNICEF sustained approach to strengthening routine immunization and overall health system in the country.
“Complacency is not an option, as polio could come back if we let our guards down, looking at what happened in Malawi and Mozambique, even in the UK and USA. Polio anywhere is polio everywhere.
“We might have won the battle against wild polio, but the war against all types of polio is not yet over. A circulating variant of poliovirus is
still affecting too many children in Nigeria. But again, thanks to our joint efforts, our perseverance, and our strong conviction that a world without all forms of polio is possible, we have managed to control the situation.
“There is still a lot of work ahead of us. While we have reduced the number of zero-dose children, the routine immunization rate remains low.
“It is time for Nigeria to further strengthen immunization. From its success in polio eradication, Nigeria learned to be persistent, vigilant, and committed.”
