From Timothy Olanrewaju, Maiduguri
Borno has rolled out the third round of immunisation of children against polio from April 14 to 19.
Director of Disease Control and Immunisation at the Borno Primary Healthcare Development Board, Fatima Ali announced this at a media roundtable in Maiduguri yesterday that the immunisation exercise would cover 10 local government areas in the state.
“We have designed innovative strategies to close the immunisation gap that occurred as a result of COVID-19 and insurgency, which made some areas inaccessible to health workers,” she disclosed.
She said the three-leg strategies include “Big Catch-Up, focus on immunising all children from 24 to 59 weeks.
Others include fixed mobile centres, a mobile arrangement created at health facilities in the 10 local governments to provide immunisation to children and ensure accessibility.
She said the outreach centres located some kilometres away from health facilities, were designed to provide immunisation to areas difficult to reach or inaccessible due to the security challenge.
Ali also explained that the state immunisation team was tracking movement of people from conflict affected areas to safer areas and ensuring children in such movements receive polio vaccine at entry and exit points through the outreach strategies, in collaboration with the security agencies.
The state Immunisation Officer, Maina Modu, said the state held the first round of immunisation in November 2024 and second round in February 2025. He urged parents and guardians to make their children available for routine immunisation.
According to experts, poliomyelitis, commonly referred to as polio, is a highly infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. The disease can lead to severe health issues, including paralysis and even death.