EHIME ALEX, Lagos
Ogun State Government has called on residents to embrace the use of vaccine to avoid preventable diseases that may arise as a result of negligence.
According to a release on Saturday from the state’s Ministry of Information & Strategy, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker gave this charge while speaking at the Obantoko Health Center, Abeokuta in commemoration of the 2020 African Vaccination Week (AVM).
The African Vaccination Week is an annual event observed in the last week of April under the coordination of the World Health Organisation with the goal of strengthening immunisation programme.
Dr Coker said that the state government chose to observe the week despite Covid-19 pandemic, which she described as a distraction.
This year’s AVM Week with the theme, “VaccinesWorkForAll”, according to the health commissioner was apt at this crucial time in world history, underscoring the need to reinforce the importance of vaccination.
The Commissioner said that vaccination which works for all ages is for the benefits of the society, calling on all and sundry, especially the pregnant women and nursing mothers to embrace its use.
Coker stated the week was a mop-up for other programmes which the state government has innovatively carved out to attract mothers to the various health facilities.
Thanking Governor Dapo Abiodun for his doggedness to revamp the health sector and partners, including the World Health Organisation, United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), among others, she informed that many enlightenment programmes are ongoing in communities to encourage people to present themselves for vaccination.
In a remark, the Executive Secretary, Ogun State Primary Health Care Development Board, Dr Elijah Ogunsola, said the ongoing routine service across the state is a reflection of the government’s commitment to the health sector, commending the present administration for the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in all primary health centers.
The State Coordinator, World Health Organization, Dr Sunday Abidoye said Ogun State was proactive in its approach, pointing out that the efforts will further reduce the population of unimmunized children in the state.
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