Polio, Lassa And Yellow Fever: Where Is The Political Will?

By Patrick Dele Cole

Since the conception of Nigeria as an independent country it has struggled with a number of deadly viruses and diseases. The most prominent and reoccurring have been polio, Lassa fever and yellow fever. These three have plagued parts of the country for many years and appear sporadically, peaking and dipping throughout the country’s history. Under colonial rule vaccinations were kept for the expatriates and British citizens in the country. The indigenous population was mostly ignored and this allowed the viruses to spread unchecked throughout the country. It wasn’t until later in the country’s history that measures were taken to slow the spread and commence eradication of the disease.

Reemergence Of Viruses

The return of the polio virus in 2016 sparked a mass emergency vaccination campaign. The return was seen in two young children in the Northern part of the country, in areas affected by the Boko Haram insurgency. The return of the polio virus is especially disheartening for the country because it was a year away from being declared polio free by the World Health Organisation (WHO). WHO guidelines state a country must not experience any new cases of the wild polio virus for three years before being declared polio free. The return of polio can be attributed to presence of Boko Haram. The insurgency has made it very difficult to get necessary treatment and vaccines to that area of the country, allowing polio to creep back in.