By Joseph Erunke, Abuja
The Federal Government has intensified efforts to address Nigeria’s zero-dose child crisis by engaging traditional rulers across Northern Nigeria to help reach millions of children who have not received life-saving vaccines and other essential primary healthcare services.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, made the call on Wednesday at the Quarterly Review Meeting of the Northern Traditional Leaders Committee on Primary Health Care (NTLCC).
The meeting brought together government officials, traditional rulers, development partners and health experts to review progress in routine immunisation, polio eradication and primary healthcare delivery across the 19 northern states.
Pate said Nigeria’s major immunisation challenge was no longer vaccine availability but the difficulty of reaching children left behind due to vaccine hesitancy, insecurity, population movement and hard-to-reach communities.
