Nigeria News

3 October 2016 - Polio transition planning simulation exercise was conducted in Abuja on 27-28 September, 2016. The exercise reviewed output of polio asset mapping, especially personnel across ten polio programme main functional areas.

September 2016 – Health Sector partners are urgently scaling-up the emergency health response to the humanitarian crisis in north east Nigeria where some 3.7 million people are in need of health assistance. A Health Sector Coordination team was deployed to Maiduguri to support the Ministry of Health in the coordination of the health sector response. 17 partners are actively engaged with government authorities to strengthen coordination of resources and emergency response.

Maiduguri, 28 September 2016 - In response to the detection of wild polio viruses (WPV) in Borno in August 2016 after more than two years of maintaining a polio-free status, the government of Nigeria declared the outbreak as a national public health emergency. Equally, the governments of Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad and Niger declared a regional public health emergency for the Lake Chad sub-region.

Following the declaration in Nigeria, plans were made to involve the military and civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) in accessing children in very vulnerable areas.

Abuja, 21 September 2016 - The scope of the second polio outbreak response (OBR) to the recently detected wild polio virus type 1 (WPV1) in Borno State has been expanded and different strategies employed to reach eligible children in Nigeria. The immunization campaign which commenced on 17 September, 2016 is targeting 31,540,054 children in 18 states across northern Nigeria.

Maiduguri, 12 September 2016 - The World Health Organization (WHO) has supported the Borno State Ministry of Health (SMOH) to establish Early Warning Alert and Response System (EWARS) by training  over 80 health professionals.

EWARS is a WHO disease surveillance, alert and response initiative for early  detection and containment of  disease outbreaks in humanitarian emergency settings.

WHO in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH) and State Ministry of Health, Borno trained 28 community resource persons (CORPs) from newly liberated areas on Integrated Management of Childhood Illness including handwashing, breastfeeding and malnutrition screening.

The WHO team visited Monguno Local Government Area (LGA) to determine the feasibility of expanding the Early Warning Alert and Response System (EWARS) and conduct rapid health facility assessments in Monguno LGA.

Abuja 09 September 2015: The highest level of commitment to polio eradication was yet again demonstrated by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari when he flagged off the sixth immunization campaign in his home town of Daura local government area (LGA) in Katsina state on Saturday, 5th September 2015. The President personally administered drops of polio vaccine to children less than five years of age at his residence in Daura.

26 August 2016 - As the preparations for the August outbreak response (OBR) to the detection of two (2) wild polio viruses in Borno State intensify, the five (5) implementing states of Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe, in collaboration WHO and other partners have commenced the implementation of strategic activities to ensure quality campaign and increased access to children in trapped and susceptible populations living in the region.

Abuja, 23 July 2016 - Nigeria has been polio-free for two (2) years since the country’s removal from the list of polio-endemic countries on 25 September 2015 by the World Health Organization (WHO). This is the longest period Nigeria has ever gone without a case of wild poliovirus (WPV) and the closest the country, has ever been to ending polio. This important milestone leaves the global community cautiously optimistic that ending polio in Nigeria, and the whole African region, is within reach.

22 August 2016 – A WHO emergency health team has arrived in Maiduguri city, north-eastern Nigeria, to assess and respond to the health needs of 800 000 people in the area. WHO and partners will work with local officials to urgently reduce the rates of death and disease caused by malnutrition, disease outbreaks, and a long-term lack of access to basic health services.