Jigawa State has vaccinated no fewer than 2.6 million children under the age of five against polio, surpassing its target with 116 per cent coverage in its latest immunisation campaign.
The State Health Information Officer of the Jigawa State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Shehu Ibrahim, disclosed this on Monday during a media and stakeholders’ engagement held in Dutse, the state capital.
The programme, organised by the agency with support from the UNICEF Kano Field Office, reviewed the outcome of the March round of the campaign.
Providing an update, Ibrahim said the exercise successfully reached children across all 27 local government areas of the state.
“About 2.6 million children were vaccinated during the last round conducted in March, representing 116 per cent coverage,” he said.
Despite the success, he revealed that 5,551 cases of non-compliance were recorded during the campaign. According to him, over 4,000 of the cases were resolved through community engagement, while 472 remained unresolved.
He identified Auyo, Babura, Birnin Kudu, Malam-Madori, Ringim and Gwiwa as areas with weak social mobilisation during the exercise.
In his remarks, the Executive Secretary of the agency, represented by the Director of Public Health, Muhammad Abdullah, commended health workers and development partners for the outcome of the campaign.
He, however, stressed the need for sustained efforts to ensure total coverage.
“We must not relent. Every child must be reached if we are to keep Jigawa and Nigeria polio-free,” he said.
Abdullah also urged the media to intensify efforts in combating misinformation, which he noted contributes to vaccine hesitancy in some communities.
Similarly, the Deputy State Immunisation Officer, Ashiru Ma’azu, said the engagement was aimed at strengthening collaboration with journalists to improve public awareness and campaign effectiveness.
“The goal is to enhance coverage through accurate reporting and increased community sensitisation,” he said.
Also speaking, the Health Education Officer, Sani Yusuf, underscored the role of the media in shaping public perception, urging journalists to promote vaccination as safe and accessible.
A representative of the World Health Organization, Adamu Isa, was also in attendance.
Stakeholders at the meeting agreed that sustained media involvement remains crucial to addressing vaccine resistance and ensuring that no eligible child is missed in subsequent immunisation exercises.
