Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
The Benue State Government says it has released counterpart fund to ensure effective measles vaccination campaign in the state even as it called on all stakeholders play their roles to enhance the achievement of the desired 95 per cent coverage throughout the state.
Governor Samuel Ortom who disclosed this while flagging off the 2018 Measles Campaign in the state, on Tuesday, stated that the campaign was targeted at eliminating the menace of Measles, which advancement in science has made a preventable child killer disease.
Saying that measles still remains one of the most infectious human diseases which can cause serious illness, lifelong complications and death, the Governor noted that it was for that reason that his administration created a platform to meet the demands for Public Private Partnership for effective implementation of Health programmes through the Benue State Planning Commission (BSPC).
The governor enjoined local government chairmen, their spouses and the entire councils to give the desired support to the Measles Vaccination Campaign to ensure that no child is left unvaccinated.
Governor Ortom also appeal to traditional, religious leaders and the health teams to sustain the mobilization of people at the grassroots for the exercise which they have done well in the past.
“The health teams going round must realize that that they have the responsibility of saving lives through the campaign. They should therefore remain committed to this cause. Efforts should be made to cover hard to reach settlements, Internally Displaced Persons and Refugee camps while taking note of trouble flashpoints. Let me assure our people that we are aware of the challenges and are already making conscious efforts to surmount them for a better working environment.”
He posited that inauguration of the State Primary Health Care Board by our administration was to key into Federal Government’s strategy of bringing services in the sector under one roof.
“This will strengthen the operations of all the components of Primary Health Care. The State Executive Council has also approved the transfer of all Primary Health Care staff and their emoluments from the local government councils to the Board.
“I shall symbolically effect this transfer by handing over the files of this category of staff from the 23 local government areas to the Executive Secretary of the Board.”
While appreciating the contributions of development partners in the health sector, the Governor commended them for realizing that government alone cannot achieve the desired health targets.