After two years, polio resurfaces in Nigeria...

-


Nigeria’s hope of being certified Polio-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO), next year, might have been dashed, as two new cases have been reported. Health authorities in Abuja have, however, remained silent, with key officials refusing to be quoted.

The two cases of Wild Polio Virus (WPV) were discovered in Gwarzo and Jere LGAs of Borno State, yesterday. A top health official said the country has decided to term it a ‘suspicion’, while it seeks the best approach to break the news to the public.

It was learnt WHO could announce the development at a press conference in Geneva tomorrow. Last month, July 24, Nigeria celebrated two years without any new case of Polio because the last known infection was in July 2014. It is uncertain how the WHO will handle the resurgence.

WHO and Rotary, which co-funds polio eradication, warned against relaxing surveillance and maintaining commitment. Last week, a number of civil society organisations raised concern about N12.8bn immunisation fund yet to be released only 4 months to the end of 2016.

"We have less than five months to the end of 2016 yet nothing has been released for immunization, for procurement of vaccines and other logistics," said Dr Aminu Magashi, project director for Community Health and Research Initiative, part of the coalition Partnership for Advocacy for Child and Family Health, PACFaH.

"As a nation we cannot continue to depend on development partners to buy the vaccines we need in the country yet we have funds for such purposes in our budget," he added

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

TWO MAJOR FACTORS THAT HAS MADE RWANDA THE GIANT OF AFRICA

-
Image
Volkswagen opens Rwanda's first car plant : Rwanda’s first domestically built car rolled off the assembly line at Volkswagen’s   new factory in Kigali on Wednesday as Europe’s biggest carmaker taps into demand for ride-sharing to expand in the region. Despite low levels of car ownership in Rwanda, Volkswagen hopes to both sell vehicles and use them in an Uber-like car-sharing system that will allow people to book rides using their smartphones. Some will also be sold into neighboring nations. Rwanda to open its first smartphone factory: The Minister for ICT and Innovation stated, “Smartphones are important ICT tools since there are some digital services that only require smartphones such as access to land services among others. There is also need to ensure affordability of smartphones whose high cost prevents citizens from benefiting from various digital services. . We hope that the plant to locally produce smartphones will boost access and also economy,” My opin...
Read more

Wow, PMB Agrees To Fund GEJ Government's Job Initiative, YouWin

-
Image
The Federal Government is to consult with beneficiaries and other concerned parties on the restructuring and refocusing of the multi-billion Naira Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (YouWin) programme, with the objective of injecting new ideas for its sustainability, the finance ministry has said. The programme, initiated by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011 as part of the government’s job creation initiatives, provides grants to about 1200 people to start small businesses each year. It also made provisions for the training of entrepreneurs. A statement from the ministry said 18, 000 young entrepreneurs were trained in various aspects of Small and Medium Enterprises management and business skills; and 3, 900 of them, including 1, 200 women, were each given non-repayable take-off grants for businesses of their choice ranging from N1 million up to a maximum of N10 million. Beneficiaries who were yet to receive payment before the Jonathan...
Read more

Two Students From Unilag Drown In The Beach

-
Image
Tragedy struck on Sunday as two postgraduate students of the University of Lagos drowned in the Elegushi Beach during the celebration of their friend’s birthday. It was learnt that the deceased – Adesola Ogunmefun and Funmi Odusina – graduated from the Covenant University and were on the verge of bagging Master’s Degrees in International Law and Diplomacy from UNILAG. PUNCH Metro gathered that the deceased and the host were having fun at the beach around 6pm when they were swept into the Atlantic Ocean. Other visitors to the beach were said to have rescued them, but Ogunmefun died on the spot. Odusina and the host, identified only as Bolu, were rushed to some private hospitals in the area, but were reportedly rejected. Odusina died on the way to the Lagos Island General Hospital, while Bolu was recuperating in the facility. A friend of the deceased, Edward Onyemathi, said the deaths could have been avoided if adequate safety gadgets were provided at the beach. He desc...
Read more