Borno govt, NGOs begin mass vaccination against maternal, child mortality

The Borno State government in collaboration with Alive & Thrive – an NGO – began a mass vaccination campaign against maternal and child mortality in the state.

Flagging off the integrated Maternal Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) week in Maiduguri on Monday, the Director, Borno State Primary Health Care Agency, Prof. Arab Mohamed said the vaccination campaign would last for 5 days from the 10th of July, to Friday, the 14″ of July, 2023. 

He noted that the vaccination activities will be conducted in 26 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Borno State in 488 sites, specifically at the health facility and fixed post levels.

According to him, the core high-impact interventions of MNCHW are deworming, vitamin A supplementation, and nutritional screening for children; maternal nutrition and complementary services in antenatal care; as well as health promotion services.

“Vitamin A Supplementation alone has been shown to have significant benefits in reducing under-five mortality by up to 34%. It also offers protection to children trom various diseases such as measles (up to 54%), malaria, diarrhea, and pneumonia (up to 44%)”.

“In addition to combating worm infestations, deworming has the added advantage of reducing the likelihood of other infections. By conducting nutritional screening, children at risk of severe malnutrition can be identified at an early stage, allowing for timely intervention”.

“Antenatal Care (ANC) Services play a crucial role in providing pregnant women with essential supplementation, including multivitamins, tetanus toxoid (1) vaccines, and Sulphadoxine-Pyrimethamine (SP). Health Education aclively promotes key houschold practices, such as exclusive and complementary feeding, through educational sessions”.

“The use of Long-Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) can have a significant impact on reducing malaria-related illnesses and deaths, as well as lowering the overall under-five mortality rate by up to 25%, by ensuring that up to 80% of individuals Sleep under LLINs. Lastly, undernutrition is a major contributor to a signiticant number of deaths, with over 60% of diarrhea deaths, 57% of malaria deaths, and 32/ of pneumonia deaths being attributed to undernutrition.

Also speaking, Dr. Bashar Abdulbaqie from Alive & Thrive (A&T), a key partner to Borno state’s PHCDA stated that A&T will be supporting the MNCH week implementation to ensure optimal quality of services and improved geographical coverage.

“A&T has a strategic action to accelerate the reduction of child mortality and improve maternal health in line with MDG 4 and 5 recognized by the Government of Nigeria at the 53rd National Council on Health in March 2010. 

“It aims to deliver an integrated package of highly cost-effective MNCH services/interventions in order to strengthen the outcomes of routine primary health care (PHC) services,” he added.

UNICEF Nutrition Sector Coordinator, Dr. John Makiza, has reiterated the importance of exclusive breast feeding to children which he says would help in reducing mortality and child death.

He also commended the Borno government and A&T as well as other donors and development partners for their commitment in reducing diseases in the state.

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