Abuja, 27 February, 2025 – The World Smartly being Organization (WHO) has reaffirmed its dedication to supporting Nigeria’s authorities in strengthening Main Smartly being Care (PHC) and addressing health plan points by implementing innovative initiatives. This dedication aligns with the country’s aim to eliminate all kinds of polioviruses by the end of 2025.
WHO Nation Marketing consultant in Nigeria, Dr Walter Kazadi Mulombo, acknowledged at the fair fair currently concluded First Quarter Overview Meeting of the Northern Damaged-down Leaders Committee (NTLC) on PHC Transport in Abuja.
Earlier in his opening observation, the Coordinating Minister of Smartly being and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, had liked the council’s tenacity in mobilizing their communities and overseeing polio vaccination campaigns towards eradication of the disease in the country.
An urgent clarion name
Professor Pate urged the venerable leaders now not to rest on their oars. He emphasized the urgent need to eliminate the circulating variant poliovirus kind 2 (cVPV2) transmission in the country by December 2025.
Professor Pate known as on the venerable leaders to double their efforts by leveraging their influence to strengthen neighborhood belief and participation in immunization efforts.
“This council has remained the most steadfast primary healthcare structure in Nigeria, Africa, and possibly the world. For 16 consecutive years, you have convened quarterly meetings without fail.
Delivering his goodwill message, Dr Mulombo also set the tone with a call to action, lauding the Nigerian government’s and traditional leaders’ unwavering commitment and underscoring their critical role in championing the fight against polio in Nigeria.
“Whereas 2024 has been a challenging year for Nigeria’s polio program, we’ve the opportunity to turn things spherical, and now’s the excellent time to act urgently and decisively to end cVPV2 in the country. WHO is dedicated to supporting Nigeria in addressing the challenges, even in the face of geopolitical complexities”, said Dr Mulombo.
The Country Representative also pledged WHO’s support in fast-tracking the accreditation of the Ibadan polio laboratory while announcing that the laboratory is fully accredited to conduct polio sequencing.
The polio laboratory in Ibadan, established in 1993, is one of the iconic polio laboratories in Nigeria that can detect, identify, and promptly report wild polioviruses (WPV), cVPVD2, as well as other enteroviruses that may be present in clinical and environmental specimens.
Tackling Challenges with Renewed Commitment
Despite the progress made, Nigeria is still reporting cases of cVPVD2.
Dr Muyi Aina, Executive Director of the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), pointed out some of the challenges deterring the nation from achieving its polio eradication goal said, “For too long, we’ve struggled with points love noncompliance, vaccine hesitancy, passed over children, safety considerations, inadequate routine immunization protection, information falsification and malnutrition.
We need to push past our obstacles and reveal no baby is left unvaccinated. We need the red meat up of the NTLC participants, as neighborhood engagement is key to achieving success. We should always rewrite the story this year,” said Dr Muyi.
Traditional Leaders Vow to Strengthen Efforts
In his remark, Alhaji Sama’ila Muhammad Mera, the Emir of Argungu, who double as the NTLC chair, expressed gratitude to the government and partners for their continued support.
The Emir called on his fellow traditional leaders to collaborate with religious figures and community influencers to drive vaccination demand.
Raising concerns over the suboptimal performance of routine immunization in the country’s North Central and North West geopolitical regions in 2024, he said, “The time has attain for us to end polio as soon as and for all. Every unvaccinated baby is a menace to all children in our communities. We should always strengthen newborn and defaulter tracking systems to fabricate definite every baby receives the mandatory vaccines. We should always play an active perform in planning and supervising immunization sessions,” the Emir urged.
The Emir welcomed the strategic shifts introduced by the government, including increased accountability, localized advocacy, improved data integration, and synchronized campaign efforts.
A Unified Effort to End Polio
The NTLC’s quarterly meetings serve as a vital platform for reviewing progress and tackling challenges in polio eradication, routine immunization, maternal and child health, and primary healthcare service delivery.
The latest gathering featured presentations on the state of Nigeria’s polio program, updates on routine immunization, maternal and newborn health, and the introduction of the rubella vaccine. Participants also discussed previous meeting resolutions, with various partners delivering goodwill messages.
