Nigeria Country Team, UNICEF

This was presented at the June 2004 UNICEF meeting dedicated to examining communication in the context of the final push to eradicate polio. The presentation provided an overview of the epidemiological history, current trends and risk factors in Nigeria, as well as the country-specific communication strategies.

In Nigeria in 2004, the number of wild polio cases is more than 4 times that in 2003, and the number of infected states has doubled. Contributing factors include: the suspension of polio immunisation in Kano in July 2003 due to perceived lack of vaccine safety; funding problems; and low coverage of supplementary immunisation activities (SIAs) in the north. Oral polio vaccine (OPV) has since been sourced from Indonesia and it is hoped that this action will lead to a resumption of the immunisation campaign in Kano State.

A detailed analysis of the reasons given for children being missed and the primary sources of information regarding OPV are presented. The communication strategy includes: media management (focusing on positive media coverage), production of media kits (including information about OPV safety), development of partnerships with national and international media, engagement of political leadership, dialogue with and cross-border interaction among key religious leaders, and increased output of radio serials, TV spots, radio jingles, and the like. Goals include: regaining public trust in OPV, achieving high-quality SIAs in the fall of 2004 (3 are planned), and revitalising routine immunisation.

Click here to download the full presentation as a PDF file.