Around 900,000 children under the age of 15 will be vaccinated against polio by the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency.
Mrs. Linda Ayade, the wife of the state governor, made the announcement on Monday in Calabar, the state capital.
“We are targeting about 900,000 children who are to be vaccinated in the state. We are told that Cross River State and Benue have shown the signs of having the virus.
The agency claimed that it has gone so far as to fraternize with militants in order to provide polio vaccines to children living in riverine communities.
Dr. Janet Ekpenyong, Director-General of the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency, recently urged parents in the state to have their children vaccinated to prevent paralysis.
“We are leveraging on the campaign to see that any child less than 15 years that show signs of paralysis of lower limbs, you should please report to appropriate quarters.”
According to Chairman Cross River State Women Medical Doctors, Vivian Otu, 50 percent of children in the state have been vaccinated against polio, but available statistics show that many children are yet to receive the vaccine.
Dr. Betta Edu, the Commissioner for Health, said the importance of ensuring that eligible children in each community receive necessary vaccines cannot be overstated. The vaccination teams will visit residential homes, schools, churches, mosques, gated estates, and other public places to vaccinate children who meet the criteria.
