Yobe unveils 2024 yellow fever vaccination campaign

The Yobe State Government will launch a state-wide Yellow Fever mass vaccination campaign on Thursday, November 12, 2024. The campaign, a collaborative effort between the Yobe State Primary Healthcare Board, the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, and development partners, will run for 12 days across all 17 Local Government Areas of the state.

According to a statement released by the Executive Secretary of the SPHCB, Dr Babagana Kundi Machina, and made available to PUNCH Online on Saturday, November 9, 2024, the campaign aims to reach 85% of the target population, individuals aged 9 months to 44 years.

The Yellow Fever vaccine, along with other routine immunisations, will be administered through health facilities and designated vaccination sites within communities.

“Yellow fever is a mosquito-borne disease that can cause serious liver damage and is a significant public health concern,” the statement explained. “It affects people of all ages, with over 200,000 cases and 10,000 deaths reported globally each year. This preventable disease underscores the importance of this vaccination campaign.”

To ensure the campaign’s success, the state’s social mobilisation and community engagement committee will conduct extensive advocacy and sensitisation efforts to raise awareness among relevant stakeholders and ensure all eligible children receive the potent Yellow Fever vaccine.

A training workshop was held to equip members of the social mobilisation and community engagement committee with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively engage communities during the campaign.

The Director of Immunisation and Disease Control, Dr Umar Chiromari, highlighted the importance of the campaign, emphasising the need to achieve the target coverage for Yellow Fever, Measles, Polio, and HPV vaccines.

Other speakers at the workshop, including Ali Musa Yawale, Director of Information at the Ministry of Home Affairs, Information and Culture, and Gabriel Dan Azare of Child Clinical Support and UNICEF representative, stressed the importance of achieving the set targets and objectives of the vaccination campaign.