Amb. Olufolake AbdulRazaq, wife of Kwara Governor and Founder of Ajike People’s Support Centre, launched the Integrated Measles/Non-invasive Prenatal Diagnosis (NIPD) campaign in Kwara on Wednesday.
According to AbdulRazaq, who launched the campaign at Shao Basic Health Centre in Moro Local Government Area (LGA), measles is an acute and highly infectious disease caused by the measles virus.
She stated that it was one of the leading causes of illness and death in children under the age of five.
According to the governor’s wife, over 17,000 measles cases are reported in Nigeria each year, with thousands more going unreported.
“This significant occasion is intended to launch two important campaigns for diseases that are preventable but continue to be major causes of illness and death among children under the age of five.”
“Data available from 2000 to 2016 show that the use of measles vaccine resulted in an 84 percent reduction in disease-related deaths.”
“As part of the global measles elimination effort, Nigeria has developed a national Measles strategic plan 2018-2028, which includes the introduction of second dose Measles vaccine (MCV2) into our routine immunization,” she explained.
According to AbdulRazaq, polio is a paralytic disease, with the last case in Nigeria occurring in 2016 before the country was declared Polio-free.
“The country was shocked to discover recurrent outbreaks of circulating Vaccine Derived Polio Virus, which, while a weak form of Polio Virus, is also capable of causing paralysis.”
“Unfortunately, a case of the weak virus was detected a few weeks ago in Kaiama LGA of the state.”
“His Excellency Malam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq’s administration is not resting on its laurels in ensuring that necessary vaccines reach eligible children at the appropriate time.”
“It is in this regard that I urge you to take advantage of the opportunity presented by this round of immunization campaign by bringing out your children and wards to benefit from this laudable initiative,” she said.
She praised the Kwara government for recruiting health workers and for undertaking massive renovation, upgrade, and equipping of primary health facilities to make them more welcoming to both patients and health workers.
“To supplement the government’s efforts in this regard, my office and the Ajike People Support Center will continue to ramp up sensitization and awareness to ensure that no child in the state is left behind.”
“Today’s flag-off ceremony demonstrates this administration’s commitment and ownership in making healthcare services accessible and available to all,” AbdulRazaq said.
Dr Nusirat Elelu, Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, stated earlier in her welcome address that measles and poliomyelitis are among the top ten killer and debilitating diseases in Africa.
Elelu stated that the diseases, while vaccine preventable, posed significant risks to children under the age of five, and that the agency is committed to protecting the health and welfare of women and children.
She encouraged everyone to make their children under the age of five years old available for the interventions, regardless of immunization status, and informed them that the mode of operation would be a house-to-house campaign.
“We intend to vaccinate approximately 601,865 children against measles and 1,074,126 children under the age of five against polio,” she said.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Raji Razaq, praised the AbdulRahman administration for being proactive on healthcare delivery issues.
Razaq stated that the state government is dedicated to providing welfare and healthcare services, and he urged parents and guardians to work with immunization officials to get their children immunized.
Mrs Farida Usman, a resident who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said it was a timely intervention because measles outbreaks in communities are common during the summer
Usman praised the governor and his wife for their various efforts to ensure citizens’ well-being.