In the last three decades, the world has gone through a long and tough road in the push to eradicate the crippling wild poliovirus disease. From more than 350,000 cases across 125 countries in 1988, the disease has been reduced to 33 cases in only two countries — Afghanistan and Pakistan, by the end of 2018. Nigeria, […]
Just five years ago, Kano State was arguably the epicenter of Nigeria’s polio virus epidemic, accounting for over 80% of total cases in the country. Various socio-cultural factors accounted for the state’s huge burden at the time, from ignorance and misconceptions about the polio vaccine, to the state’s high population and finally its strategic location […]
Editor’s Note: Today’s piece is an OpEd from renowned Virologist and Chair of Nigeria Expert Review Committee on Poliomyelitis Eradication and Routine Immunisation, Prof. Oyewale Tomori. This World Immunisation Week, he explores Nigeria’s long road towards polio eradication and gives insights into exactly how far we still have to go before we can confidently assert […]
In about six months, Nigeria will achieve what will arguably be one of her recent greatest public health achievements; being declared polio-free. The journey has been lengthy and tough, and required sustained efforts of all stakeholders; from frontline workers identifying and reporting cases in states like Kano and Niger, to volunteer community mobilisers ensuring every […]
2019 in Nigeria is going to be quite a significant year, given the hotly contested presidential election taking place on February 16th and the governorship elections on March 2nd. For those of us in the health sector, it is important that we continue to champion health as an election issue. As a Nigerian citizen, as […]
