By Garba Mohammed
The Sokoto State Government has approved the purchase of 26 cooling systems to ensure proper storage of polio vaccines across the state.
The announcement was made by the Deputy Governor, Idris Mohammed Gobir, who is also the Chairman of the Taskforce Committee on Polio Eradication and Routine Immunization. He spoke during a meeting of the committee held at the Deputy Governor’s conference hall.
He explained that each of the 23 local government areas in the state and the three zonal offices would receive one cooling system each.
Representing the Deputy Governor, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Faruk Umar Abubakar Wurno, said the decision was taken because the lack of effective cooling systems has been one of the reasons for poor performance in vaccination exercises.
He added that many of the cooling systems already in use at the local government level are either weak or no longer working.
According to him, the new cooling systems will help keep vaccines active and reliable, which is important to achieve success in the immunization campaign.
The Deputy Governor also said the meeting would address other challenges affecting polio vaccination in the state. These include poor data collection, political interference, and the negative attitude of some workers involved in the exercise.
He assured that the state government is committed to implementing any useful suggestions made during the meeting.
He expressed hope that the next round of vaccination, scheduled between the 11th and 14th of this month, will record better performance and wider coverage.
Earlier, the Special Adviser at the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Muhammad Bello Marnona, said the meeting was important to create a common agenda to eliminate polio from Sokoto State.
Dr. Marnona expressed confidence that the meeting would highlight the challenges facing immunization and provide solutions to overcome them.
