Dr Zikrullah Giwa, the Polio Technical Consultant to the Northern Governors’ Forum (NGF), said Thursday that Nigeria recorded four cases of wild polio virus in the past 10 weeks.
Giwa who made this known at a meeting of the forum in Kaduna, said the cases were recorded in Kaduna, Sokoto, Borno and Zamfara states.
“In 2012, Nigeria has four cases of wild polio virus in four states compared to four cases in three states for the same period in 2011.’’
According to him, the current National Epidemiology the country recorded 62 cases of the wild polio virus in 2011 in eight states.
Giwa stated that the total number of “circulating vaccine derived polio virus’’ (cVDPV2) was 35 in 10 states of the federation in 2011.
“In 2012, Nigeria has zero cVDPV2 compared to five cases in four states for the same period.''
The consultant identified weak political will, funding, monitoring and commitment as some of the obstacles against the polio eradication.
He told the governors that only 10 months were left for the country to achieve the global goal of stopping polio transmission.
He advised them to emulate the India strategy of interrupting the spread of the disease, adding that advocacy for sustained support and political commitment at all levels of governance were necessary for eradication.
The consultant also urged traditional institutions, religious and professional bodies and the civil society to support the crusade to free the country of polio. (NAN)