The Lagos State First Lady, Dr. (Mrs.) Claudiana Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu has officially flagged-off the Integrated Supplemental Immunization Activities (SIA) for 2024, a routine immunization vaccination project which has been scaled up to encompass and fortify all Lagosians against Measles, Yellow fever and the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).
During the flag-off ceremony at the premises of Ifako/Ijaiye Local Government, the first lady represented by Mrs. Victoria Olowu, wife of the Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Energy, said: “This vaccination is crucial for several reasons. Firstly, it ensures that our children are protected from measles, a highly contagious disease that can lead to several complications, including pneumonia, deafness, blindness and even death. It is our collective duty not to allow any child to suffer from a preventable, deadly diseases.
“Secondly, we are battling yellow fever, a viral hemorrhagic disease that has caused great pain to many families. Considering the diversity, dynamism and density of our population, we must embrace vaccination to protect ourselves against outbreak of this mosquito borne illness that has a potential to cause temporal epidemics.
“Thirdly, through the HPV vaccine, we are taking a practical, deep step in the fight against cervical cancer, one of the leading causes of death among women in Nigeria.
“By vaccinating our young girls, we are not just protecting them from the virus, but we are saving their futures, their dreams and their potential to contribute to our society.
This integrated campaign is not just about vaccines, it is about creating healthier communities and the healthier future for all of us”.
According to Dr Sanwo-Olu, “SIA 2024 is a demonstration of the power of collaboration between government, health workers, development partners and the communities. The initiative will significantly reduce mortality rates, which align with the state government’s ‘THEMES Plus’ agenda and the State Development Plan 2052; which prioritizes child health, disease prevention and alleviating the economic burden on households, communities and the state government.
“We have a clear goal to reach every eligible child, no matter where they live. We want to ensure that no one is left behind, because health is a fundamental right, not a privilege” she maintained.
In his remarks, Dr. Abimbola Bowale, Supervising Permanent of the Lagos State Primary Healthcare Board (LSPHCB) admitted that SIA 2024 is very crucial because it’s about safeguarding the future of the next generation.
He said “At the level of all the health districts in the state, we have actually done a lot of social mobilization with schools, authorities, religious leaders, market leaders and other segments of the society.
What we are saying is that people should come out of this exercise. it’s not only for children, adults who are also 44 years and below can take yellow fever vaccine while the measles vaccines and HP Vaccine are for our children.
“These vaccines have very minimal side effects. Of course, if somebody puts a needle in your body, you are bound to have pain on that side, there could be some sort of redness that could mean some form of fever issues, if that happens it shows that the vaccine is actually working. All over the world, it’s been proven by data that vaccines are safe, they are effective and they also help in ensuring that the community is free from all forms of communicable disease.
“People shouldn’t exercise any form of fear. They should come out and partake in the exercise, knowing fully that we have several years of data that supports the fact that vaccines are extremely effective” Dr. Bowale stressed.
Dr. Oluwatoni Adeyemi, Senior Special Assistant to the Lagos State Governor on Health, allayed the fears of Lagos residents on the danger inherent in taking vaccine injections saying “I know that some adults might actually be skeptical about vaccines generally, based on maybe what they see on social media or what they’ve heard from the past, but I would like to tell you that some of those things are actually myths, misconceptions and they’re also rumors. So please always try to verify your facts, so that you have factual information from the Primary Healthcare Board or from the National Primary Health Care Developmental Agency”.
“These vaccines have been tested, they are safe, and they’ve been proven to be very effective to protect children and even some adults against a lot of preventable diseases. So this is telling that clinical trials have gone on all over the world, globally and even local studies here in Nigeria, to prove that this vaccine is safe and effective for children and adults” she opined.
Mrs. Honfor Adesola, Director, Health Education and Health Promotion Service for LSPHCB advised all residents of Lagos to come out en masse and get vaccinated.
“I appeal to everybody to embrace our vaccination team. For the children: nine months to 59 months, you should allow them to be vaccinated with measles vaccine.
Between age nine months to 44 years, they should allow us to vaccinate them with yellow fever vaccines. And our girl children, those of them that have not been vaccinated that are within the ages of Eight to 14 years, should also allow the team to vaccinate them with the HPV vaccine.
The Integrated Supplemetal Immunization Activities (SIA 2024) is organized in collaboration with several organizations including the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO), National Primary HealthCare Development Agency (NPHCDA), Centre for Disease Control (CDC), United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and AFENET among others.
Story by Ajibola Adedoye. Edited by Newdesk, Environment Africa Magazine
