Sokoto intensifies Polio eradication drive

By Musa Ubandawaki, Sokoto SOKOTO: The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in collaboration with the Sokoto State Government and other development partners, has intensified efforts to eradicate polio through aggressive community mobilisation, public awareness campaigns and routine immunisation, amid persistent security challenges in parts of the state.

The renewed campaign was highlighted during activities marking the 2026 World Polio Day, celebrated under the theme, “One Day, One Focus: Ending Polio,” with a rally organised by UNICEF on Saturday, October 24, to mobilise youths, women and persons with disabilities towards strengthening public participation in the fight against the crippling disease.

Speaking shortly after the rally, UNICEF Social policy Specialist Isah Ibrahim, said the organisation had intensified stakeholder engagement to ensure that every eligible child in Sokoto State was reached with the polio vaccine, particularly those living in communities facing access challenges due to insecurity. Ibrahim disclosed that the campaign was targeting more than one million children across the state, stressing that sustained mobilisation and collaboration among government institutions, traditional rulers, community leaders and other stakeholders remained critical to achieving the objective.

He expressed concern that insecurity continued to pose a major obstacle to immunisation activities, noting that five local government areas remained accessible for vaccination operations under the prevailing security conditions, although the precise scope of access constraints required continued assessment. According to him, the state government had engaged local government chairmen, councillors, their wives, community leaders and traditional rulers to strengthen house-to-house and door-to-door sensitisation, particularly in communities where misconceptions, misinformation and limited access to health services could undermine vaccination efforts.

Also speaking after the rally, the Director of Advocacy at the Sokoto State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dahiru Kamaru Gada, described the four-day World Polio Day programme as a successful campaign that began and ended at the state’s Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), the coordinating hub for disease surveillance and response activities.

Gada said the activities were deliberately designed to engage different segments of society and communicate the urgency of eliminating polio, adding that the programme combined sports, community mobilisation and public enlightenment to reinforce the message that the disease could be defeated through collective action. He explained that the activities began on October 21 with a youth football match, which used the popularity of sports to encourage young people to take ownership of the eradication campaign.

The match, he said, underscored the need for unity and sustained commitment to rid Sokoto State and Nigeria of polio. The second activity, held on October 22, featured a friendly football match between government representatives and development partners. Gada said the event symbolised the importance of government leadership, political commitment and adequate funding in ensuring that interventions supported by development partners translated into measurable public health outcomes.

He commended the Sokoto State Government under Governor Ahmed Aliyu for its support for immunisation and disease prevention initiatives, noting that effective coordination between public authorities and development partners remained essential to reaching children in vulnerable and underserved communities. The third activity, a para-soccer match between Team Virus and Team Vaccine on October 23, featured polio survivors whose participation brought an emotional dimension to the campaign.

According to Gada, Team Vaccine emerged victorious, reinforcing the message that immunisation remains a vital defence against a disease capable of causing lifelong disability. “Virus brings disability, while vaccine brings life. Vaccine must always win,” Gada declared, using the symbolic outcome of the match to urge parents and caregivers to protect their children against vaccine-preventable diseases.

The four-day programme culminated on October 24 with a grand sensitisation rally from the Emergency Operations Centre through Marina, Yar Goriba, Gobirawa and Rijiyar Dorowa before returning to the centre. Participants marched through the designated routes, sang awareness songs and engaged residents on the importance of immunisation and collective responsibility in preventing polio transmission.

Gada expressed appreciation to UNICEF, the World Health Organisation, AFENET and Rotary International for supporting the campaign, while acknowledging the contributions of polio survivors and other participants. He urged parents and caregivers across the state to present their eligible children for immunisation, emphasising that vaccines were free, safe and available daily at pri