The Rivers State Primary Health Care Management Board RSPHCMB has officially kick started the FIRST ROUND NATIONAL IMMUNIZATION PLUS DAYS 2025
in a brief ceremony to flag off the campaigns at the Premises of the Rivers State Primary Health Care Management Board in Port Harcourt the Executive director of the board professor Kinikawo Green said the first round NIPDS campaign scheduled to run for 5 days will require health officials going from house to house, school, churches, mosque and health facilities , he noted that the aim of the campaign is to raise awareness that Polio is debilitating illness and to ensure that the vaccines are received by our children. He thanked Mothers for their dedication so far in bringing their infants and children for routine Immunization and admonished mothers present at the venue “Please if you have a friend, Sister who for one reason or the other feels that vaccination causes sterility or that Vaccination will cause your child not to produce, Tell them its not True!Tell them the Vaccine is SAFE, PROTECTIVE amd you will also not have overdose of it” so Spread this message to all the nooks and Cranny of Rivers State. We know that based on the activities of the Board, Information Dissemination is really done well. What we want to do is to ensure that there is no Resurgence relating to Polio virus in the state. and thanked the eminent personalities, Royal fathers, Partners for their contribution towards the success of the campaigns
in his Goodwill message, The Paramount Ruler of Evo Kingdom, Eze Gbaka gbaka, Leslie Eke, hamper on the need for continuous collaboration in ensuring that the local people are educated on the importance of vaccination and to dismiss all the negative, traditional, spiritual and religious beliefs or myths towards vaccination aparty. He said we will continue to talk and educate our people on the need to take this opportunities.
For their part, Representative of the WHO -( World Health Organization) thanked the board for the strong advocacy meeting towards the laung of the campaigns, urging them to make transportation available to access the hard to reach areas and praised the Executive secretary for chairing the weekly review meeting of the national immunization Plus day, which earned him a National recognition.
For his Part, The Rotary District Governor, Rotary Chinedu Ikegwani in his goodwill message said – Rotary has been in the forefront of fighting to eradicate Polio with a promise to make the world POLIO FREE.and so far we eradicated polio up to the tune of 99.9%, we appreciate our partners some of them are here, The WHO, UNICEF,etc with their help we were able to achieve that.
Rotary has committed so much to eradicate Polio and it still remains our number one top priority and we are not going back, our determination is more than ever. when we started this fight in 1985, we had over three thousand cases of polio annually but as at today we brought down to just ten, we have only two polio endemic case in the world. as at last week, we have just two cases for this year, Two cases in Afghanistan and Eight cases in Pakistan that is ten on the whole. That is why it is important that we continue to do what we are doing, In terms of Immunization, Advocacy, Fund raising and awareness. Rotary has spent over Two billion dollars in the fight against Polio, we raise funds all the time, In my district 9140 we have been able to raise as of today,One Hundred and Forty thousand Dollars as at today for Polio and that is What Rotary do every year to raise funds, because it cost a lot of money to fight this Polio diseases, I very happy with what the State is doing to fight this polio virus, and I am happier to see these women with their children urging them to go back home and ask their friends, Neighbors, Have You immunized your child? Noting that Nigeria was declared Polio free endemic state in 2020 but we still have the one we call recirculating virus and it can still harm our children. He said Polio Diseases is not curable but it is Preventable with just two golden drops. he concluded
Also speaking at the flag off ceremony the Public health Educator Dr Diana Bobba Who spoke to the nursing mother’s in simple English explained that the Vaccine is important to ensure that no one is left behind
The Director Community Health services department Dr Joy Wihioka in her vote of thanks commended the partners, the Royal Father, Rivers State health ministry for support and enusring that their message gets to nooks and cranny of the state.
