The Kogi Government has flagged off the 2024 measles supplementary immunisation campaign against the spread of measles infection.
Kogi Governor’s Wife, Hajia Sefinat Ododo, who flagged off the campaign on Thursday in Lokoja, said that the effort was to mitigate the escalation of measles during the harmattan season.
Ododo urged parents to avail their children for the preventive measures to tackle the killer disease.
The governor’s wife was represented by the Special Adviser to the Governor on State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Sandra Musa.
She said the free measles vaccination was part of the government’s commitment to paying attention to the health of the future leaders.
“Our children are our beauty and hope in life, hence the need to give them the desired sound health.
“We as citizens must ensure that we make our children available for the vaccination programme because prevention they say is better than cure,” she said.
Dr Abdullazeez Adams, Commissioner for Health, said that the immunisation would go a long way in providing protection for children against the killer disease.
He promised the state government’s commitment to providing necessary support to the immunisation campaign activities in order to stop the spread of measles.
“Our commitment as a government is to ensure that every child receives their vaccination,” he assured.
Dr Abubakar Yakubu, Executive Director, Kogi State Primary Health Care Development Agency (KSPHCDA), said the 2024 measles supplementary immunisation campaign was put in place by the agency in collaboration with the Ministry of Health.
“Measles is a highly contagious viral infection that, for many years, has been a leading cause of death among children worldwide; the only powerful weapon in the fight against it is the measles vaccine.
“Measles vaccination is only meant for children between the ages of nine and 59 months,” he said.
Abubakar noted that Nigeria recorded over 16,000 suspected measles cases between January 2024 to date.
He said that the report was far higher than what was obtainable in the past years, with 70 deaths recorded within the same period.
“Kogi has recorded 167 suspected cases of measles between January 2024 to date.
“Our agency’s target is to achieve 95 per cent measles vaccination during this integrated supplementary campaign across the state.
“This effort is aimed at creating a sensitisation campaign on the impact of measles disease and its associated preventive measures,” he said.
He further announced that the polio vaccination campaign would follow suit from November 30 to December 3. (NAN).
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