Group introduces cash incentives to boost vaccination intake in Gombe

A non-governmental organisation, ‘New Incentives,’ in collaboration with the Gombe State Government has launched a programme aimed at increasing routine immunisation through cash incentives for caregivers.

The programme, tagged ‘All Babies Are Equal (ABAE)’, offers financial assistance to encourage the vaccination of children and combat vaccine-preventable diseases.

Speaking at the launch of the programme, the state’s Commissioner of Health, Dr Habu Dahiru, highlighted the importance of routine immunisation for children.

He assured on the government’s strong commitment to the health and well-being of residents of the state.

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“We are committed to supporting the ABAE programme and other healthcare-related initiatives across the state to ensure effective service delivery at our Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs),” Dr Dahiru stated.

He called on mothers, caregivers, and traditional rulers to actively participate in the immunisation programme, and educate their communities about the importance of vaccinating children to prevent the spread of diseases.

The Stakeholders Relation Director of New Incentives, Alhaji Nura Muhammad, said the programme provided caregivers with cash incentives of N1000 per visit for six visits to health facilities for vaccinating their children.

He further noted that upon completion of six visits, caregivers will receive an additional N5000 to encourage full vaccination coverage.

The Operations Coordinator of the incentives-ABAE programme, Mustapha Kabir, said the initiative which began with 98 health facilities in three states, has now expanded to over 6,000 facilities across nine states, including Gombe.

“The ABAE programme, which initially began in 2017 in Katsina, Zamfara and Jigawa states, has since been expanded to six additional states, including Gombe,” Kabir explained.

Our correspondent reports that the new incentives-ABAE programme is expected to significantly boost immunisation rates in the state and contribute to the reduction of preventable diseases among children.