Shettima Stresses Need For Nigeria’s Own Effort In Polio Eradication

Shettima Stresses Need For Nigeria’s Own Effort In Polio EradicationVice President Kashim Shettima has emphasized that Nigeria cannot rely solely on external partners to eradicate polio, urging the country’s leaders at all levels to take decisive action to eliminate the disease.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Shettima made these remarks during the 147th National Economic Council (NEC) meeting, where he inaugurated the NEC Ad Hoc Committee on Polio Eradication at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. In a statement issued by his spokesman, Stanley Nkwocha, the Vice President stressed the importance of a collective effort to eradicate polio, urging committee members and stakeholders to intensify efforts to address the reemergence of the disease.

“If we have relied heavily on assistance from partners to combat this disease, it is now time for us to take a determined step to eradicate it from our people,” Shettima said. “I am confident that with collective and collaborative efforts, we can achieve this goal, working alongside our partners and all stakeholders.”

Shettima also highlighted the need for long-term strategies, warning against relying on short-term measures to combat polio. He urged the committee to focus on sustainable solutions, including the local production of polio vaccines.

“We cannot continuously respond to the virus’s recurrence with short-term measures, as they will always fail,” he stated. “We need to develop a forward-looking plan, and this requires a long-term approach to containing and ultimately eradicating the virus.”

The Vice President further underscored the critical need for local vaccine production as part of this long-term strategy, believing it would ensure a sustainable approach to fighting polio. He acknowledged the ongoing challenges posed by new variants of the virus, such as those recently identified in Kano and Sokoto, but commended the swift action taken by those states to tackle the new strains.

Governor Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State, who chairs the Polio Eradication Ad Hoc Committee, thanked Shettima for the opportunity to serve on the committee. He expressed confidence that the committee would succeed in eliminating polio from Nigeria, noting that the committee’s membership had been carefully selected to tackle the critical issue.

“On behalf of the committee members, I would like to thank you for forming this committee with such a strategic membership,” Governor Yahaya said. “With the involvement of key stakeholders, including governors and business leaders like Aliko Dangote, we are confident that eradicating polio in Nigeria will be made much easier.”

Yahaya, who is also the Chairman of the Northern State Governors Forum, assured the Vice President that the committee would deliver on its mandate to eradicate polio and prevent its reemergence.

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