Stakeholders in the health sector have identified strategies to ensure an effective introduction of the Measles-Rubella vaccine in Nigeria in 2025.
They spoke on Saturday during a stakeholders meeting on the vaccine organised by the Centre for Well-being and Integrated Nutrition Solutions (C-WINS) in Abuja.
The stakeholders include policymakers, health experts, development partners, and community leaders.
Project lead of the Measles-Rubella (MR) vaccine advocacy project, Dr Nihinlola Mabogunje said there was low awareness about rubella despite the fact that it is wrecking havoc among children.
Rubella, also called German measles or three days measles, is a contagious viral infection. It causes a rash, low fever and other symptoms.
Dr Mabogunje said many children suffered from congenital rubella syndrome, which is a long term illness.
She said this therefore underscores the need to add the rubella component to the measles vaccine.
She said no child should die or be left behind in vaccination for measles and rubella.
The public health and development expert also said a lot of funding for vaccines come from Gavi, noting that while Nigeria is doing a lot, it is time for local governments to start investing in immunisation.
She said, “Vaccines must be routinised. When we routinise vaccines, it means less money is spent on campaigns. Mothers should go to the facilities and get their children vaccinated at birth and all other times they are supposed to be vaccinated.”
A consultant public health physician with the Department of Public Health, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dr Kenneth Onome Adagba said the federal government was working in collaboration with partners to address misinformation and hesitancy against the vaccine.
He said doing so would encourage parents to readily make their children available for vaccination against measles and rubella.
He said the government was also working to make the vaccines readily available and ensure reduced out of pocket expenditure for the vaccine.
Lukman Ismaila, a scientific officer at the Department of Surveillance and Epidemiology, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) said Nigeria records not less than 10,000 measles cases annually adding that it is therefore important to stop the continuous outbreak of the disease.
He explained that while measles affects all age groups in the country, it mostly affects children between zero to five years.
He said, “Measles infection can be prevented by taking vaccines, and by doing that, you can equally prevent the outbreak of the disease.
“So what this project is saying is to take the campaign to the community levels and ensure that everybody is aware about measles and the importance of taking measles vaccines.”
The Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Governors Spouses Forum, Barrister Hauwa Haliru Hassan said the forum is championing the campaign to sensitise communities about the need for parents and mothers to immunise their children against measles and rubella infection.
She said, “So basically, what they will be doing is engaging the communities, talking to the traditional leaders, wives of local government chairmen and involving them in this campaign to ensure that no child is left unvaccinated.”
Dr Mohammed Lekki, Chairperson of the Nigerian Health Sector Reform Coalition, a coalition of the major civil society organisations and non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the health sector, said the organisation had kick-started an advocacy campaign to stakeholders and key influences across the country on the introduction of the vaccine in 2025.
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