The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in partnership with the Katsina State government, has launched a large-scale vaccination campaign targeting measles, rubella, and polio across all 34 local government areas of the state.
Rahama Farah, Chief of UNICEF’s Kano Field Office, announced on Tuesday that the campaign will be implemented in two phases from October 6, 2025, to February 13, 2026. The first phase, focusing on an integrated measles-rubella and polio drive, will run from October 6 to 13.
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“While progress has been made, the circulation of the polio virus in Katsina is yet to be halted,” Farah said. He noted that two polio cases have been reported in 2025 from Danmusa LGA, compared with 17 cases in eight LGAs in 2024. Security challenges affect 20 of the state’s 34 LGAs, complicating immunization efforts.
For the campaign, Katsina will receive 3,698,500 doses of Novel Oral Polio Vaccine (nOPV2) targeting 2.3 million children under five.
Additionally, 4.8 million children aged 9 months to 14 years will be vaccinated against measles and rubella. The effort will deploy 2,253 teams using fixed and temporary posts, while 5,584 teams will provide routine immunizations and other antigens, including house-to-house services.
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UNICEF has trained 3,300 health workers and 600 Non-Compliance Resolution Teams (NCRTs) to address vaccine hesitancy. State facilitators, voluntary ward supervisors, and community mobilizers will also support the campaign, with local leaders actively engaged in advocacy and oversight.
Shamsuddeen Yahaya, Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Primary Health Care Agency, emphasized the campaign’s importance: “This is a wonderful opportunity to protect our children from rubella and ensure comprehensive polio coverage for those aged zero to 59 months.”
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