Conditional Cash Transfer For Polio Immunization Yielding Results–Stakeholders

The Conditional Cash Transfer for Routine Immunization is yielding positive results in the North East and North Western States, Stakeholders have said.

The programme, supported by new incentives – All Babies Are Equal (NI-ABAE), encourages giving caregivers a certain amount of money for availing their children for immunization.

The Caregiver receives N500 for all visits except for the 9-month and 15-month visits, where the incentive is N2,000 upon receiving MCV 1, and the incentive is N1,000 upon receiving MCV 2.

A communique issued at the 5th bi-annual joint stakeholder meeting for the North East coordinated by the Gombe SPHCDA and co-hosted by the Bauchi SPHCDA, Jigawa SPHCDA, Adamawa SPHCDA and Taraba SPHCDA to discuss strategies on reduction of child mortality through cost-effective and evidence-based health interventions.

“Small cash incentives are disbursed to beneficiaries during each of the six routine immunization visits, conditional on infants receiving BCG (newborn), PENTA, and PCV (6, 10, and 14 weeks); and MCV vaccines (9 and 15 months).

“Though these vaccines are the ones minimally required to receive the incentive, all vaccinations in the routine immunization schedule are encouraged.

“The Caregiver receives 500 for all visits except for the 9-month and 15-month visits, where the incentive is 2,000 upon receiving MCV 1, and the incentive is 1,000 upon receiving MCV 2.

“These vaccinations are provided at no cost to the caregiver through government-supported clinics. The cash incentives help compensate for transportation costs, lost income, and waiting times while creating behavioral change through awareness creation on the benefits of immunizations,” the communique jointly signed by Permanent Secretary, SMOH Gombe State, Dr. Danladi Adamu and Representative to the Permanent Secretary, SMOH Jigawa, Hassan Kwalam and 32 others said.

The stakeholders in the North East said since beginning to scale the programme in January of 2021, the All Babies programme has enrolled over 1 million infants, encouraged over 9.5 million vaccinations, and disbursed 2.3 billion Naira to caregivers thanks to the collaboration of staff at over 4,000 government clinics in 124 LGAs.