Rotary International Polio Ambassador to Nigeria and the founder of Sir Emeka Offor Foundation (SEOF), Sir Emeka Offor, has urged concerted surveillance and a renewed commitment to tackling the menace of polio following recent concerns in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where the virus is yet to be eradicated.
He made the remarks in Abuja at the celebration of the 2024 Polio Day.
According to him, through the determined efforts of Rotary International and global partners in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), a remarkable reduction in poliovirus cases has been achieved since 1988.
Offor, who is the patron of the FCT chapter of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), said the Sir Emeka Offor Foundation had been at the forefront of the fight and was working tirelessly with partners to train and equip healthcare workers for effective service delivery and partner traditional and religious leaders to build trust and acceptance.
However, he noted that the path to the complete eradication of polio requires sustained effort and total commitment and pledged that the foundation would continue to support the mission until it achieves the goal of a polio-free world.
Speaking at the event, the coordinating minister of health and social welfare, Prof Mohammed Ali Pate, assured that the federal government will ensure that children’s immunity against Polio remains high.
“Besides the two Southeast Asian countries yet to eradicate wild Polio virus, we also have the virus variant still in a few areas where children have not been sufficiently immunised.
“We need to intensify so that every child will have a chance to be protected against this deadly disease,” Pate said.
