Only 42 percent of Nigerian children under 15 years are fully protected against diphtheria, a document by Save the Children has said.
The document issued by Kunle Olawoyin stressed the need for funds to manage the diphtheria outbreak, with more than 7,200 cases and 453 deaths so far.
According to him, Save the Children in coordination with local authorities will launch a wide health response known as Save the Children’s Emergency Health Unit in the three most impacted states of Kano, Yobe and Katsina, deploying expert health and supply chain staff to help over-stretched clinics detect and treat diphtheria cases and support with mass vaccination campaigns across the worst-hit areas.
The interim country director for Nigeria, Faton Krasniqi, said; “The entire humanitarian community is alert to the crisis here. We are coordinating closely together and working alongside the Nigerian ministry of health to ensure we reach everyone who needs treatment and to contain the spread of the disease.
“Diphtheria can be fatal in more than 10% of cases, but this can increase in places like overcrowded displacement camps or informal settlements in cities, where families have limited access to health services or where health facilities are overwhelmed. ”
“Currently, only 42% of children under 15 in Nigeria are fully protected from diphtheria, and in this most recent outbreak, 80% of the confirmed cases are people who are unvaccinated.”
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