BENUE, JANUARY 31, 2018 – Wife of the Benue State Governor Dr. Eunice Ortom has revealed that Nigeria ranks top in the number of children globally who are not immunised against measles.
Mrs. Ortom disclosed this on Tuesday in Makurdi, the state capital at a stakeholders meeting.
”Nigeria has the highest number of children who are not immunized against measles globally ahead of India and Pakistan,” she said.
She said that the statistics were gotten from World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children Educational Fund (UNICEF) data of 2016 saying it was in line with the above that the Federal Government (FG) had organized a National Measles Campaign to immunize children from nine to 59 months.
The governor’s wife informed further that Benue State was going to commence its exercise from Feb. 8 to 20.
The Executive Secretary, Benue State Primary Healthcare Board, Dr. Bem Ageda, urged the stakeholders to supervise the exercise so as to boost the morale of health workers.
Ageda further encouraged mothers to visit the nearest vaccination post with their children for immunization adding that the exercise would be done in two phases beginning from Feb.8 to 13 and February 15 to 20.
On her part, Mrs Rosemary Shawon who spoke on behalf of the Wives of Local Government Councils (LGC) Chairmen pledged their unalloyed and unflinching support to enable the exercise succeed while Mrs. Mwuese Ubebe, Chairman, Konshisha LGC who spoke on behalf of female chairmen said that they would supervise the exercise in order to realise its optimum aim.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mrs. Ladi Ajene, encouraged mothers to embark on door-to-door sensitization so as to eradicate measles in the state.
