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Gates Foundation, U.S. varsity praise Nigeria for accurate immunisation data reporting

By Chukwuma Muanya, Assistant Editor
31 July 2017   |   4:31 am
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the University of Minnesota and the United States Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy have commended Nigeria...

polio. PHOTO: google.com/search

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the University of Minnesota and the United States Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy have commended Nigeria for transparency in the latest world annual report of data on routine immunisation and polio eradication.

Professors Orin Levine of the BMGF and Mike Osterholm of the University of Minnesota made the commendation in a joint annual report of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

They gave kudos to the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) in the WHO/UNICEF Estimates of National Immunisation Coverage (WUENIC), which they described as positive for the first time.

The report said Nigeria had a better and accurate data on immunisation coverage at the sub-national levels for 125 out of 194 countries.

Nigeria, according to the publication, was commended for reporting the most accurate estimates of her immunisation coverage.

Although the publication decried the security and administrative challenges in the country, especially in reaching every child for vaccination against preventable diseases, Levine and Osterholm acknowledged Nigeria’s courage and commitment, stressing that this was required to map out gaps in coverage and it responded appropriately.

They therefore called on other countries to emulate Nigeria’s good example in transparency, accuracy and due process in its new programme’s data reportage on routine immunisation, adding that it was the best strategy to improve the protection of their communities against preventable diseases.

The publication also acknowledged global progress at ensuring that no child was left behind in lifesaving vaccines and described childhood immunisation as one of the best investments any country can make.

It stressed that every dollar invested on immunisation resulted in 44 dollars in terms of socio-economic benefits.

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