United Nations International Children’s Emergency Funds (UNICEF) has called on the media in the North West zone to sensitise the public on the importance of routine immunisation.
The call was made yesterday by the UNICEF country director, represented by Dr Shamina Sharma at the closing of a two-day media dialogue on the importance of routine immunisation and zero dose reduction campaign held at Sokoto Guest Inn in Sokoto.
The dialogue was organised by the UNICEF Field office Sokoto in collaboration with state primary healthcare development agencies of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states.
Sharma said from statistics, about 48 million children in Nigeria have no access to any form of immunisation in their lives, with the North West zone of Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara having the worst records.
She therefore tasked journalists to create greater awareness on the need of caregivers, community leaders and decision makers to wholeheartedly embrace immunisation as important to the lives of the general public on whatever type of diseases.
According to her, children who were denied routine immunisation were crudely exposed to death resulting from vaccine preventable diseases which cause serious hindrance to the growth of the society.