Nigeria has 60 out of 600 polio cases worldwide, the Minister of State for Health, Dr Muhammad Ali Pate, has said.
Speaking at the National Consultative Stakeholders’ Conference on Polio Eradication in Nigeria,? organised by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA),yesterday in Abuja, he expressed worry? over the number of cases Nigeria was presently contending with, especially? given the fact that some states have high number of cases while a few states were polio- free.
However, expressing optimism, Pate said, “In 2010, India had 42 polio cases but in 2012, it had zero cases so with a dose of optimism, we can eradicate it if India with its size could do it.”
He also noted that the challenge of security was important to the eradication efforts which cannot be ignored and added that election periods contributed to the upsurge of the virus which is more prevalent in the north- west zone of the country.
While calling on States and Local Governments to complement federal government’s efforts, he said that other countries rely on donors’ aids to drive their polio eradication initiative, the federal government is putting in his own money.
He said, “Polio eradication is a task that must be done, it’s not impossible so we should review our mind set.”