Some northern state governments in Nigeria have signed a Memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Bill Gates and Dangote Foundations, to strengthen routine immunisation in the region, Channels report.
The partnership is aimed at eradicating polio cases and other child killer diseases in Northern Nigeria and other States.
Speaking during the signing of the agreement in Kaduna on Wednesday, Mr Bill Gates said his foundation was determined to eradicate polio and other related diseases in Nigeria, Africa and globally through partnership with various states and countries.
He commended the various state governments for allocating a substantial sum of their annual budget to the health sector.
On his part, President of Dangote Foundation, Mr Aliko Dangote, commended the state governments for their efforts in routine immunisation coverage and assured them of his foundation’s continuous support to the various state governments in Nigeria in the fight against child killer diseases as well as boosting the health sector.
He also announced the extension of additional one year partnership on routine immunisation with Kano State.
The agreement was signed with the governments of Kaduna, Borno, Sokoto and Bauchi States.
Technical And Financial Assistance
State governors, the Minister of Health, traditional rulers, diplomats, representatives of development partners and other relevant stakeholders in the health sector witnessed the signing of the agreement.
Under the agreement, the two foundations will offer both technical and financial assistance in support of the exercise in the respective states.
In his presentation, the Secretary of National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr Ado Mohammed, explained to the gathering what the Federal Government was doing to sustain routine immunisation.
He said Nigeria had successfully reduced childhood mortality, as at 2015, a feat he attributed to the use of vaccines.
Some development partners at the ceremony also lauded the agreement.
UNICEF Country Representative, Jean Gough, said the MoU would offer the model platform to capitalise on the prospects of evidence-based approaches towards sustainable routine immunisation.
The Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, Governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima and the Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Bala Bantex, unanimously agreed that the routine immunisation in their respective states had started yielding results, as the region in the past 13 months recorded no case of polio.
The public/private partnership, also seeks to improve routine immunisation and primary health care in the north with a goal of reaching 80 per cent coverage with basic vaccines by 2020.
For proper sustenance of the MoU, stakeholders expect that the state governments involved in the partnership will meet up with their own responsibilities and ensure transparent implementation of the programme.
Over two million deaths are delayed through immunisation each year globally.
Despite this fact, vaccine-preventable diseases remain the most common cause of child mortality in Nigeria, with an estimated three million deaths each year.
In Nigeria, immunisation against childhood diseases such as diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio and measles remains a difficult task in the health sector.
In spite of the challenges, the World Health Organization (WHO), in September 2015, removed Nigeria from the list of polio endemic nations in the world.
This is the first time that Nigeria has interrupted transmission of wild poliovirus, bringing the country and the African region closer than ever to being certified polio-free.