Cross River to vaccinate 693,000 over meningitis

From Judex Okoro, Calabar

The Cross River Government has disclosed that plans are on to vaccinate 693, 000 children against meningitis.

The Deputy Governor, Professor Ivara Esu, who made the disclosure while inaugurating this year Meningitis Day in Calabar, said the government will prioritise the campaign because the State forms part of the meningitis belt in Nigeria.

The Deputy Governor, who was represented by the State’s Commissioner for Health, Dr Betta Edu, said: “We want to protect our children from all the vaccine-preventable diseases and the target is to vaccinate 693,000 children across the State.

‘We want to track the children in the hinterlands and deliver the vaccine in its potent form.

‘The health centres have been equipped and given the right quantity of vaccines, logistics and funding. We hope to record one hundred per cent success in this exercise.

‘Cross River State forms part of the meningitis belt in Nigeria especially the northern part of the State. So if you see something, it is important that you quickly say something so that we can avoid an outbreak in the State,’ he said.

Also speaking, Dr Janet Ekpenyong, Director-General of the Cross River State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (CRSPHCDA), called on mother’s to bring their children to the respective PHC’s for vaccination.

She said this campaign is about injectibles and will be carried out in the PHCs as against house to house vaccination.

‘This particular vaccination has to do with injectibles and it’s not going to be conducted house to house.

‘Anything that concerns injectibles there might be complications that’s why we are doing this campaign at the health facility,’ she said.

Also speaking, Dr Halima Tafida, a representative from the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, said 34 experts have been deployed to the State to help guarantee the success of the exercise.