Lagos, high risk state for polio - Commissioner

Muda Oyeniran, Lagos - 02.07.2009

THE Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, has said that the state had been tagged “High Risk State ” for Polio by the Federal Ministry of Health.

This, according to him, was due to recent four outbreaks of wild polio virus (WPV) in two local government areas of the state namely, Ajeromi Ifelodun and Eti-Osa.

Dr. Idris, who disclosed this at a press briefing on the sub-national Immunisation Plus Days scheduled to begin across the state on Saturday, said the population dynamics of the state, which encouraged daily influx of people, was responsible for the importation of the polio virus into the state.

He said the failure to reach and immunise children was the reason the country continued to experience the transmission of the virus. According to him, an estimated 60,000 children in the state had remained un-immunised against polio till date.

Idris said the state government was committed to the eradication of disease from the state, saying polio should not be allowed to impugn on the rising profile of the state as a a mega-city of note, even on the international platform.

He disclosed that over 15 million children in the state have been immunised with the oral polio vaccine in the last six months.

He gave the breakdown of the immunisation figure to include 3.8 million in January; 4.1 million in February 4.4 million in March and 4.1 million in May.