CSO asks FG to ramp up efforts to end vaccine-preventable deaths

Save The Children Nigeria, a civil society organisation, has asked the federal government to ramp up efforts toward reducing under-five deaths from vaccine-preventable diseases.

The CSO issued a statement on Thursday to commemorate the 2023 World Immunisation Week themed ‘The Big Catch-Up’.

The CSO cited the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) carried out by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in 2021, where it was indicated that about one in 10 children in Nigeria die before they turn five years old.

The National Immunisation Coverage Survey (NICS) carried out by the NBS as part of the global MICS programme, it added, shows that the infant mortality rate is 63 deaths per 1,000 births for the five-year period before the survey.

The organisation said the under-five mortality rate (U5MR) for the same period was pegged at 102 deaths per 1,000 live births.

The CSO said the neonatal mortality rate is 34 deaths per 1000 births while child mortality was put at 42 per 1,000.

Save The Children said the under-five mortality rate of children born in the poorest households (133 per 1000) was nearly three times the under-five mortality rate for children born in the richest households (47 per 1000).

The CSO said immunisation coverage in Nigeria is below the Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP) goals.

The organisation said only 36% of children aged 12 to 23 months received all recommended vaccines while 18 percent did not receive any, putting a substantial number of children at risk of vaccine-preventable diseases.

The CSO said more children are fully vaccinated in the southern zones compared to the northern zones.

“We would like to urge all stakeholders to continue to build strong political commitment for increased immunisation coverage and other primary healthcare interventions,” Save The Children said.

“[This is to contribute] to increased domestic investment in health to meet the Abuja Declaration of 15% (2011) as against the present 8% budgetary allocation to health by Nigeria in 2023 at the national level.

“We will work with stakeholders towards ensuring that increased health spending directly improves child health services, reducing non-financial barriers to accessing care and prioritizing primary health services in Nigeria.

“Save the Children International Nigeria calls upon the federal and state governments to keep immunization high on their sustainable development agenda as vaccinated communities will be healthy, productive, and resilient.”