Ekiti State Government has expressed delight over the declaration of
the state as polio free.
The Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Dr Mojisola
Yaya-Kolade expressed this exhilaration when she received the team
from the Word Health Organization, National Primary Health Care
Development Agency and African Field Epidemiology Network in her
office in Ado-Ekiti.
Yaya-Kolade while welcoming the team to the state said Ekiti State
Government would give all necessary support to enable the team achieve
their purpose of visiting the state.
The Commissioner who appreciated the Ekiti state government under the
leadership of Dr. Kayode Fayemi for creating an enabling environment
and necessary logistics, also eulogise all the medical team in the
state, especially the field officers from primary and secondary
facilities for putting in their best to achieve the feat which led to
the declaration of Ekiti State as polio free.
Earlier in his address, the leader of the team, Dr Walla Abdulahi said
the visit of the team was to get the state acquainted with the
environmental surveillance for polio.
He said Nigeria has been declared polio-free by the WHO and African
Union would be formally declared polio free by 25th August, 2020.
He reiterated that to enhance polio drive activities, vaccine drive
polio virus would be introduced as he said Pakistan and Afghanistan
are still living with the virus.
Dr. Walla advised Nigeria not to rest on her oars but should still be
at alert to quickly detect any polio case from outside and instantly
mount intervention.
He echoed that Ekiti State is the only state in Nigeria that has no
history of polio virus. “To us we are visiting a holy land as far as
polio virus is concerned because Ekiti state in Nigeria history has no
history of one polio virus”.
The team lead said some sites would be visited in the state to take
waste water which would be taken to the Ibadan Polio Laboratory for
proper analysis.
It would be recalled that environmental surveillance started in
Nigeria in year 2011 and since then 29 states including FCT have
implemented it.