From Paul Orude, Bauchi
Toro Local Government Area (LGA) in Bauchi State has received 241,150 doses of Novel Oral Polio Vaccine (nOPV) from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to combat zero-dose cases in its ongoing polio immunisation campaign.
Musa Danladi, Toro’s Local Immunisation Officer (LIO), announced this on 27 April 2025 during a monitoring visit by UNICEF-supported journalists to assess the campaign targeting 196,220 children under five in the LGA.
Toro is among 13 Bauchi LGAs with 556,000 unvaccinated children. Danladi noted that UNICEF’s support, including logistics, training, advocacy, and sensitisation, will significantly reduce zero-dose cases. The LGA recruited 1,477 personnel to ensure all unreached children are vaccinated.
Vaccines were distributed across Toro’s 17 wards, with solar direct drive storage units, donated by UNICEF, used in hard-to-reach areas.
Danladi reported a smoother campaign compared to previous rounds, attributing success to pre-campaign activities like training, advocacy visits to Toro Community Radio, and security agency collaboration to access all settlements. “The support from UNICEF is timely and will drastically reduce zero-dose children in Toro,” he said.
Non-compliance was recorded in 71 households (138 children), with 36 households (72 children) resolved through interventions by community groups like FOMWAN and SALAMA.
Currently, 31 households (66 children) remain non-compliant, with their details submitted to the Toro District Head for action.