Kumbotso Local Government Area of Kano State has commenced an emergency vaccination exercise following the detection of poliovirus in a child in Challawa Ward.
The Vice Chairman of the council, Sulaiman Dauda Basarake, announced this at a stakeholders’ meeting on the outbreak, saying the council would work with health officials to ensure that all eligible children are vaccinated.
The Head of the Primary Healthcare Department, Lawan Ahmad Getso, said the detected case had raised concerns about possible transmission to other children and communities.
He urged traditional, religious and community leaders to mobilise residents and support the vaccination exercise to prevent further spread of the virus.
The LGA Facilitator, Naziru Sani, said the detection of one infected child could indicate that other people were carrying the virus without showing symptoms.
He urged parents to allow their children to be vaccinated, stressing that community participation was essential to interrupting transmission.
A Cluster Consultant with the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Mukhtar Ali, said the affected child had received routine vaccinations, including polio vaccines, on more than one occasion.
Ali explained that some children could carry and transmit poliovirus without showing symptoms, making vaccination of all eligible children critical to containing the outbreak.
The Health Councillor, Haruna Shera, commended health workers for their commitment, saying he had personally witnessed their efforts during the vaccination exercise.
Basarake said the council chairman and councillors would participate in the exercise to help ensure that no eligible child was missed.
He disclosed that the council had previously ordered the closure of a school in Na’ibawa Ward after its head allegedly resisted the vaccination of pupils.
The vice chairman also warned vaccination workers against falsifying records or wasting vaccines, urging them to carry out their duties responsibly.
He assured stakeholders that the council would consider requests raised at the meeting and take necessary measures to support the vaccination exercise.
