Experts say strengthening immunization services and systems must be accorded priority in order to draw attention to the unlimited opportunities that vaccines offer humanity in saving lives, especially vulnerable children.
To this end, the national primary health care development agency said it is ready to carry out a mass vaccination of children in all parts of the country, throughout the 2019 African vaccination week.
TVC’s Kemi Balogun reports that the vaccination and safety of the African child from vaccine preventable diseases cannot be over emphasized.
The administration of a vaccine stimulates the body’s own immune system in order to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease.
This is the 9th Africa vaccination week with the theme protected together: vaccines work.
Available statistics confirm that due to the selfless commitment of vaccine heroes, a total number of 116.2 million children were vaccinated and saved from vaccine preventable diseases all over the world in the year 2017. This figure is the highest figure ever reported.
In Africa, 1 in 5 children still do not receive all the necessary and basic vaccines.
Coming down to Nigeria, many children still miss out on vaccination particularly in the poorest, marginalized and conflict affected communities, due to lack of awareness and knowledge of caregivers on immunization related issues.
Immunization remains the cheapest and yet the most effective life saving health intervention to all children in human history. And the national primary health care development agency is appealing to parents, guardians and care givers to make their children available for the immunization exercise.
