Following the worst diphtheria outbreak in recent history, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has distributed 9.3 million doses of the vaccine to impacted states in Nigeria.
Nchekwube Nwosu-Igbo, a UNICEF communication assistant, said in a statement that the dosages were sent to the listed states: Kano, Bauchi, Borno, Yobe, Katsina, Kaduna, and Jigawa.
Four million doses were sent to Kano, the outbreak’s center, according to the statement.
According to the statement,
“Another four million doses were being procured and would be handed over to the government in the coming weeks.”
According to the statement, the outbreak has so far caused more than 11,500 suspected cases, 453 fatalities, and more than 7,000 confirmed cases, predominantly in youngsters.
The severity of the vaccination issue in Nigeria was made clear by the explanation that the majority of cases are children between the ages of 4 and 15 who have not gotten even a single dose of the essential vaccine.
The statement claims that UNICEF is urgently assisting the Nigerian government in its fight against the outbreak, with the purchase of vaccines for the government’s response being a critical component of that assistance.
“The devastating impact of the diphtheria outbreak, according to the statement, is a grim reminder of the importance of vaccination, stressing that Nigeria is home to a staggering 2.2 million children who haven’t received even a single dose of the vaccine – the second largest of such in the world.
UNICEF, the statement emphasized, has taken urgent actions to drastically reduce the number, pointing out that every child deserves protection from preventable diseases.