By Anietie Akpan
Over one million children have been immunized in Cross River State in the one week polio immunization exercise.
The Obong of Calabar and Treaty King of the Efik Kingdom, His Eminence Edidem Ekpo Okon Abasi Otu V, had officially flagged off the 2025 edition of the National Immunization Plus Days (NIPDs 1) and Africa Vaccination Week on May 2, at the Primary Health Centre, Adiabo Ikot Itu Ibuot in Odukpani Local Government Area (LGA) of the state,
The Chief of UNICEF Field Office, Enugu, Mrs. Juliet Chiluwe in an interview with some newsmen on May 6, after monitoring the polio immunization exercise in Calabar, said UNICEF targeted 1.1 million children to be immunized and as at May 6, over 90 percent was achieved…in terms of numbers for Cross-River state, we are targeting about 1.1 million children aged between 0 to 59 months”.
In Cross River, after the official flag off on May 2, the one week programme started on May 3 and will end on May 8.
She said, “we are here in Calabar as there is a national immunization plus day campaign ongoing in the South South and south-east region, whereby following the launch of the World Immunization Week, we are implementing immunization campaigns for children aged between 0 months to 59 months. Basically, it’s a polio campaign. Children are being administered polio vaccine.
“As UNICEF, we partner with the State Government to ensure quality delivery of the immunization services. So far, we commend the State Government of Cross River state , the Primary Health Care Development Agency and the community leaders, including the churches who have been able to mobilize the masses, mobilize caregivers, mothers, fathers for their children to be immunized.
The Chief of UNICEF Field Office, Enugu, Mrs. Juliet Chiluwe (left) with the health immunization officials inspecting the immunization antigens on Monday.
“The turnout has been tremendous. We have even been able with the help of traditional leaders and church leaders to reach the unreachable children where there was resistance”.
On acceptability of the polio immunization exercise, Chiluwe said, “acceptance for the vaccine is very tremendous and including the private schools, the public institutions and markets. The acceptance for the vaccine is very commendable. Translating that, the duty of care for the State Government, the Primary Health Care, including the leadership for the communities, for the religious, even the parents is well attuned to the attainment of the rights and well-being of children”.
On the contribution of UNICEF to make the programme a success, she said, “in UNICEF we support financially and also technically. This include, community mobilization, logistics of the vaccine and also the quality control including working with the National Primary Health Care Department just to ensure that these initiatives happen”.
For the challenges, “We don’t have critical challenges to be honest. The political will starting from the top to the communities, to the leadership has been very outstanding. I can imagine on Sunday we moved from church to church. The churches already mobilized their followership. Even the fathers came out with their children and demanding for more vaccines. So we don’t have critical challenges to be honest”, Chiluwe stated.
She further explained that “the acceptance for vaccine is very outstanding in this region. The more reason we don’t have the numbers of children that are exposed to paralysis and this is minimum. But what we are trying to do is to create a head of unit processing the protection of the children”.
The target group for this immunization campaign according to her is for children aged between 0 and 59 months and basically you have around in any population, “we always say about one third of the population are children under five. In terms of numbers for Cross-River state we are targeting about 1.1 million children aged between 0 to 59 months. .
Mrs. Chiluwe administering the vaccine on a child on Tuesday at Emeraldfield School, in Calabar while the UNICEF Health Specialist, Dr Olusoji Akinleye looks on.
“We are concluding today (May 6) but we have additional two days for the mop-up. So you have workers who come to schools or we go to places where they have been missed so that we ensure that every missed child is reached…So we should be able to reach almost 90 percent”
Dropping a general message for mothers on immunization, she said, “You know, immunization is the greatest wonder. It’s the greatest achievement to mankind. Especially if we recall that we used to have smallpox and after the invasion of smallpox it’s eradicated. It’s the same way. So mothers, caregivers, fathers, the community gatekeepers, immunizing our children is one of the best gifts we can give them”
Equally speaking, the Director General (DG) of the State Primary Care Development Agency (CRSPHCDA), Dr. Vivian Mesembe-Otu, said, “we are immunizing children against the wild polio virus which is still found in Nigeria. Like you all know, it has been eradicated in many countries but the virus is still in Nigeria and so we are intensifying during this campaign to make sure Nigeria is counted among the countries that have eradicated wild polio and so what we are doing is to go about from house to house conduct outreaches and have fixed posts where we immunize children from 0 to 59 against the polio virus
“We are not only immunizing against polio virus, as my health workers are going about, they are going about with other R.I. that is routine immunization antigens. This is an opportunity for us to pick up the zero dose The zero dose children are children who have never received any form of immunization or have missed one or two antigens So this period is a period where we want to make sure that we pick every child that has not been vaccinated especially for the oral polio vaccine”.
The DG CRSPHCDA, Dr. Vivian Mesembe-Otu, equally administering the vaccine while Mrs. Chiluwe (sitting) assists.
On accessibility, the DG said, “My health workers are found everywhere. If you go to any primary health care close to you, these vaccines are available. We are also available in fixed posts where we see any place were we know that is highly populated we can get our vaccinators there. People are also located here conducting outreaches in churches, mosques, market square and also we are doing door to door vaccination. We have also introduced extra teams to go about in the evenings from street to street to immunize these children The bottom line is that we are taking this campaign very serious because we want to make sure that Nigeria eradicates polio virus in our country.
“May 3rd to 6th is the period for the National Immunization Plus Day. We have added two more days for mop-up exercise so that we can meet up any area that we couldn’t catch up during the National Immunization Plus Day… we are hoping that before the end of this exercise we will get 100 percent and beyond”
One of the mothers spoken with, Mrs. Gertrude Nyong whose child, Jessybright Felix Nyong has taken all the immunization vaccines that has to do with polio and he is fully immunized, said, “for him being immunized I believe that is what is making him very healthy and as you can see, he has not been diagnosed of any deformity of polio and he is very active both in class and in playgrounds . He weighs 20 kg at three years old and he is a pupil of Emeraldfield school in Ekorinim”.
While thanking UNICEF and the state government for creating opportunities for mothers and their children to partake in the immunization exercise, Nyong stated , “we believe that with this, parents and children are benefiting more and children stay safe from every form of diseases”.
She advised other women to give their children to be immunized because “it is very beneficial as an immunized child stays healthy and free from any deformity”.