By Afeseh Apong
The stage is set for the second round of the National Immunization Days (NID)Against Poliomyelitis to run from Thursday May 29 to Sunday June 1, 2025.
Close to 340,000 children aged zero to 59 months are targeted in this round and will be administered the oral polio vaccine. Children aged one to five years will also receive vitamin A and pregnant women will receive their intermittent preventive treatment for malaria.
At an advocacy meeting in view of this second round, held at the regional delegation of public Works, Northwest Governor called on parents to ensure that their children within the target range are all vaccinated to ensure a healthy community.
Mr.Djunang Marceliout, Economic and Socio-culturel Adviser to the Northwest Governor responding to measures by the administration to counter vaccine denial, said the administration has been holding meetings with traditional and religious leaders. He insisted that Cameroon is a state of law and all must abide.
Bamenda City Mayor, Paul Achobong said to eliminate the threat of future epidemic, all actors from parents to health personnel have to work together.
“To fully engage in this exercise, let’s join hands to see that every child takes part” he said, adding that “Bamenda is the city of the future and considers the future of the children.The city of the future must be guaranteed by strong men and women, not by ghosts…”
The Regional Delegate for Public Health Dr. Ambe Leonel Neba presented statistics of the global, regional and national evolution of cases of poliomyelitis from 2022 to 2025, justifying the reason for this round of vaccination.
Cameroon recorded 03 of the 224 cases in the Lake Chad basin in 2022, 13 of 260 in 2023, 05 of 222 in 2024 and 02 of the 41 recorded in 2025 so far.
This round of the campaign just like the first one in April is synchronized with Nigeria, Chad, Niger and the Central African Republic. The campaign is taking place in all 205 health districts in the 10 regions of Cameroon. The main objective he added is to vaccinate 100% of children aged 0-59 months with the polio vaccine
Dr. Chebo Cornélius, Coordinator of the Expanded Program on Immunization Northwest added that this round of the NID against Poliomyelitis have been coupled to include the Mother and Child Health Nutrition Action Week (MCHNAW).
This will involved the administration of vitamin A to children aged 12 to 59 months and the giving to pregnant women, intermittent preventive treatment for malaria. The later will be done only at health units.
The advocacy meeting was followed by the official vaccination of 89 enfants of the Government Nursery School Bamenda Station by the governor and other officials present.
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