Polio
Polio eradication action with informed and engaged societies
Polio
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19th Meeting of the Expert Review Committee on Polio Eradication in Nigeria

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Summary

This Expert Review Committee (ERC) meeting, held in Nigeria March 22-24 2010, came at what the organisers considered an important moment for Nigeria's polio eradication programme. After an extended period of high levels of polio cases, Nigeria saw a significant fall in the number of children infected. Between January 1 and March 12 2009, 86 cases had been identified in 20 states, while over the same period in 2010 there were only 2 cases in 2 states. The ERC recognised the progress towards polio eradication and Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) strengthening due to an unprecedented drive coordinated by federal authorities, led by state governors and traditional leaders, implemented by local government assocations (LGAs), and supported by polio and EPI partners. However, the ERC also noted that Nigeria remains at very high risk of polio because of:

  • undetected poliovirus due to ongoing surveillance gaps as evidenced by orphan viruses and poor AFP-performing LGAs (and anecdotal reports of possible specimen tampering).
  • risk of new importations from Chad (as in 2009) and/or Senegal (largest type 1 outbreak so far in 2010).


The ERC made a series of recommendations regarding: engaging political leaders, specific requests for traditional leaders, campaign schedules and choice of vaccine; improving immunisation for preventable disease (IPD) quality; and understanding the reasons for missed children, the need for mass awareness raising activities for scaling up promising social mobilisation and communication interventions, and the independent monitoring of IPDs.

The ERC also made recommendations on the overall immunisation system, stressing a dual approach that raises coverage and strengthens the overall system. For raising coverage, the ERC endorsed Child Health Weeks twice a year. To strengthen the overall system, the full implementation of the Reaching Every Ward strategy was recommended along with the development of an infrastructure plan, improved vaccine forecasting, and improved monitoring.

In a self-evaluation process, the ERC also recommended that it should be reviewed by the Nigerian government to reduce overlapping expertise, address potential gaps in representation such health systems and communication, reconcile real or perceived conflicts of interest, and ensure rules of procedure, memberships, and terms.

Final Report:


Findings and Recommendations:


Meeting Presentations:


Presentations from specific states:

Source

19th Meeting of the Expert Review Committee on Polio Eradication in Nigeria, March 23-24 2010.