Sokoto Governor Launches Polio Immunization Campaign in Sokoto, Warns Against Misuse of Funds
Sokoto State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu has officially flagged off the 2026 Outbreak Response (OBR) campaign against poliovirus in Sokoto State, warning officials against diverting funds meant for the immunization exercise.
In a statement issued by the governor’s spokesman, Abubakar Bawa, said, the governor reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to ending poliovirus transmission in the state and ensuring every eligible child is reached.
He disclosed that the state had trained and deployed personnel across all 244 wards, with 2,830 house-to-house teams assigned to visit homes and administer vaccines.
According to him, children aged 0 to 59 months will receive nOPV and bOPV vaccines, while children aged six weeks to 59 months will be given fIPV vaccines. Children aged 0 to 23 months will also benefit from routine immunization services.
Governor Aliyu added that 3,151 trained healthcare workers had been stationed at fixed and temporary posts across the state, while 488 special teams would target transit points, hard-to-reach communities, and security-challenged areas.
He said 321 fixed-post teams had also been deployed to hospitals and strategic locations to strengthen routine immunization coverage.
The governor called on local government chairmen, traditional rulers, parents, and community leaders to support the programme, stressing that anyone found sabotaging or mismanaging funds for the exercise would face sanctions.
The Commissioner for Health, Faruk Wurno, said the state had made steady progress in immunization coverage and had recorded gradual reductions in maternal and child mortality.
He added that Sokoto had achieved over 95 percent implementation of National Council on Health resolutions, placing the state among the best-performing in Nigeria.
Also speaking, the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, represented by the District Head of Wurno, praised the governor for developmental projects in the health sector and pledged continued support for polio eradication efforts.
Development partners including World Health Organization, UNICEF, Nigeria Primary Health Care Development Agency, CDC, AFENET, SOLINA, and others also commended the state government for sustained investment in healthcare and immunization programmes.
The event ended with Governor Aliyu administering oral polio vaccines to children.
