By Habibu Harisu
The Sultan Foundation for Peace and Development (SFPD) has mobilised Community-Based Organisations (CBOs), religious and traditional leaders to reach 70,000 unimmunised children in seven Local Government Areas of Sokoto State.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the foundation organised a one-day capacity-building workshop under the Sokoto Tracking and Accountability for Equitable Immunisation (S-TRACE) Project.
The foundation is collaborating with the Sokoto State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (SSPHDA) and the project is being funded by GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, supported by Mannion Daniels.
Speaking at the event on Wednesday, the SFPD Director of Programmes, Dr Aminu Inuwa, said the CSO Fund Mechanism was aimed at working with community structures and gatekeepers to identify and address systemic gaps in Nigeria’s immunisation system.
Inuwa said the initiative leveraged traditional leadership and community-based organisations’ unique advantages of deep community trust, cultural understanding, and ability to reach marginalised populations that traditional health systems were unable to access.
“This approach aligns with GAVI 5.0 strategic priorities and Nigeria’s National Strategic Health Development Plan III.
“The S-TRACE Project is aimed at reducing zero-dose children by 80 per cent in the seven target LGAs of Sokoto State with routine immunisation antigens by December 2027, while resolving household non-compliance through traditional leader engagement and strengthening government systems for sustainability,” Inuwa said.
The director listed the LGAs to include Kware, Yabo, Sokoto North, Sokoto South, Bodinga, Wamakko and Wurno, adding that an NGO, Connected Development (CODE), “is working with the Sultan Foundation to implement the project.”
He said the CBOs comprised the Integrated Life Support for Women and Children Initiative, Hikima Community Mobilisation and Development Initiative, and Jama’a Community Development Initiative.
Others, according to him, are the Community Awareness and Development Initiative (CADI), United Hands for Community Development Initiative (UHANDS), Aminci Centre for Social Advocacy and Development, and Sustainable Impact for Community Advancement and Humanitarian Initiative.
“Each CBO will receive funds from the project grant of $600,000 depending on its zero-dose burden and targeted activities for the period up to December 2027.
“Together with these CBOs, LGA Health Teams, traditional and religious leaders and with the cooperation and support of SSPHDA and partners, we will do all that is possible to track and identify zero-dose and under-immunised children and ensure they are vaccinated,” Inuwa added.
The Special Adviser to Gov. Ahmed Aliyu on SSPHCDA, Dr Bello Marnona, underscored the importance of traditional and community groups’ engagement in achieving maximum success of healthcare and policies in the country.
Marnona urged CBO-linked mobilisers to identify and connect every zero-dose child to the nearest vaccine facility across the seven burdened LGAs and beyond.
He emphasised the need to identify affected children, link them with appropriate routine immunisation service points and follow up to ensure they receive the required vaccines.
The special adviser described religious leaders as special guides and advocates, as well as important partners for promoting positive change in their communities.
A high-ranking traditional ruler from the Sultanate Council and Galadiman Garin Sokoto, Alhaji Aliyu Attahiru, said effective community mobilisation and accurate reporting were essential to improving routine immunisation coverage and ensuring that eligible children were reached.
Attahiru reaffirmed the commitment of traditional rulers to ensuring coverage of zero-dose as well as other healthcare programmes across the state.
He admonished the participants to diligently carry out the task with commitment, saying their efforts were critical to improving immunisation coverage in the state.
Presentations on the burden of zero-dose and strategies for immunisation coverage were made by CODE Programmes Manager, Mr AbdulAziz Abdulmalik, and Director of Disease Control of SSPHDA, Dr Tukur Magaji, among others.
NAN reports that the event featured discussions on zero-dose detection, defaulters tracing, grievance resolution, infection prevention and control, gender and social inclusion-sensitive engagement, and digital reporting and tracking, among other areas.(NAN)
Edited by Muhammad Lawal
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