Dr Shamsuddeen Yahaya, the Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, said the state government has vaccinated no fewer than 1,876,781 children during its recent vaccination exercise across the state.
He said the state government had earlier targeted to vaccinate about 1,826,256 children aged between nine and 59 months, noting that 1,983,260 vaccines were used during the exercise and 6 per cent wastage, 729 non-serious Adverse Event Following Immunisation (AEFI), and zero AEFI were recorded.
“The exercise started on October 28, 2023, and lasted seven days, covering 34 Local Government Areas (LGAs), and all 361 wards of the state.
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“Measles is a viral infection that’s serious for small children, but it’s easily preventable by a vaccine.
“The disease spreads through the air by respiratory droplets produced from coughing or sneezing and it can lead to serious complications like malnutrition, blindness and even death if not treated early,” Yahaya explained.
He pointed out that the campaign was in collaboration with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Others which supported the exercise are Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET), E-health and other development partners.
