The Federal Government has deployed 500,000 doses of diphtheria vaccines to Katsina and Kano states and activated an emergency task force to contain an outbreak of the disease among children in the two states.
The development was contained in a press release signed by the Assistant Director, Information and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Ado Bako, in Abuja on Friday.
The intervention followed a directive by the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Muhammad Ali Pate, with the government also moving to strengthen disease surveillance, expand access to treatment and close immunisation gaps in affected communities.
According to the ministry, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency deployed the 500,000 vaccine doses “to support intensified immunisation activities in affected and at-risk communities.”
The government said the emergency task force was constituted by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in collaboration with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, NPHCDA, the affected state governments and international health partners.
It said the task force had been directed to act immediately on “three fronts” — outbreak containment and immunisation, expanded access to treatment and emergency support for referral care.
On containment, the government said the team would “conduct outbreak investigations, strengthen disease surveillance and intensify community sensitisation to close population immunity gaps through the immunisation of unvaccinated children.”
It also directed the Katsina State Government to establish treatment annexes in hospitals across the state’s three senatorial districts — Katsina, Daura and Funtua — to bring treatment closer to affected communities.
The ministry said the annexes would help “facilitate early intervention” for children affected by the disease.
For referral care, the government ordered urgent support for the Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina, which it described as “the principal referral centre for the state and parts of neighbouring states.”
The support is to include Diphtheria Antitoxin, intravenous antibiotics, additional clinical personnel and personal protective equipment.
The ministry said the task force would also coordinate efforts to ensure that affected communities received timely treatment while strengthening surveillance to track the spread of the disease.
The team will be co-chaired by the Director-General of the NCDC and the Director of Public Health, with representatives of the NPHCDA, health commissioners from Katsina, Kano, Zamfara and Sokoto states, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF and the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme in Katsina State.
The ministry’s Chief Epidemiologist will serve as secretary.
The government said the task force would submit weekly updates to the Coordinating Minister on “progress, emerging challenges and additional requirements,” while identified bottlenecks would be escalated for immediate resolution.
The ministry said the response was part of the Federal Government’s commitment to protecting children against vaccine-preventable diseases.
“The Federal Government reaffirms its resolve to protect Nigerian children from vaccine-preventable diseases and remains committed to a swift, coordinated and evidence-based response to bring the outbreak under control,” it said.
