Kwara to vaccinate over 80,000 children with lifesaving vaccines
By Mahmood Olayinka Alaya
In a bid to scale up immunization efforts across all parts of the state, the Kwara State Government, in collaboration with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency and other partners, is set to launch the third round of the Big Catch-Up vaccination campaign.
The exercise is scheduled to take place from Saturday, April 12 to Thursday, April 17, 2025.
The campaign aims to close immunity gaps among children who may have missed their routine vaccinations, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Professor Nusirat Elelu, disclosed this during a meeting with staff of the agency and development partners at her office.
Professor Elelu explained that the Big Catch-Up campaign is designed to strengthen routine immunization and protect children from vaccine-preventable diseases.
This round of the campaign will target three Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the state with the highest number of unvaccinated children, Baruten, Ilorin East, and Ifelodun.
She emphasized that immunization remains one of the most effective and cost-efficient public health strategies, preventing millions of deaths and reducing illness among vulnerable populations each year.
Highlighting that this is the third round of the campaign, Professor Elelu said the exercise will be carried out at both health facilities and outreach posts across all settlements within the selected LGAs.
She called on parents, caregivers, religious leaders, schools, and Islamic institutions to support the government by ensuring that all eligible children are brought forward for vaccination.
The campaign targets children aged 0–5 years who may have missed any of their routine vaccine doses.
Professor Elelu assured the public that the vaccines are safe and effective, urging parents to take advantage of this free intervention to protect their children from preventable diseases.
She reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to safeguarding the health of all residents, particularly women and children.
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