The United Nations Children’s Fund – UNICEF is urging Nigeria to strengthen its primary health care system in other to curb the spread of wild polio virus in the north east to other parts of the country.
The Chief of Health for UNICEF in Nigeria, Mr John Agbor made the appeal at a news conference in Abuja to mark the 2016 World Polio Day.
He explained that this has become important to enable Nigeria consolidate the little gains already made in its effort to put an end to the virus.
Nigeria’s polio-free certification suffered a major setback in August 2016, when four new cases of wild polio virus were reported in the north east.
The federal government immediately launched an emergency response team to curtail the spread of the virus.
The Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole said that the government has already spent over eight billion naira on immunization of children against the polio virus.
Asides efforts made in the past, he restated the government’s commitment to eradicating polio in Nigeria.
At a separate press conference, the Chairman of the Senate Committee On Primary Health Care, Senator Mao Ohuabunwa called on the executive to strengthen the routine immunization of children under age five.
Over 30 million children have been vaccinated in Nigeria against polio in the three rounds of emergency response to the recent outbreak.
