Children between 0-5 years across the country were administered the oral vaccine over the weekend.

The first round of the 2016 vaccination campaign against poliomyelitis ended in the country yesterday, February 27, 2016. The exercise, which ran from February 26 to 28, aimed at preventing any eventual polio outbreak.

In Yaounde, most discussions over the weekend were on the vaccination against polio. Olivier Tatsilong, the representative of the Head of the Mvog-Ada Health Area in Yaounde told Cameroon Tribune that over 12,000 children were vaccinated. He said the aim was to strengthen the immune system of children below five years and to reach all homes. Prior to the campaign, some health workers were sent to the field to sensitise parents on the need for the vaccination. The campaign had several strategies that targeted public gatherings such as markets, schools, churches and health centres.

He explained that other strategies concerned border zones and refugee camps. Yesterday, Sunday February 28, 2016, the target was churches, with teams seen vaccinating children who were not attended to in the first two days. The campaign began at 7 am and closed at 3 pm. According to Olivier Tatsilong, the vaccinators went out as early and returned late so as to meet the parents. “We could not vaccinate without authorisation of parents,” he explained. He said that this time, there was less resistance from parents compared to 2015. At the Our Lady of Victories Cathedral in Yaounde, the different vaccination teams carried out their task without any hitches.

The teams were supervised by an official from the World Health Organisation, Dr. Richard Mouzoko. Dr. Moukozo said the closing day yesterday targeted churches, but vaccination teams continued with door-to-door outreaches. As at press time, vaccination was still going on in the city of Yaounde. The target of last weekend’s campaign was 6.2 million children in the country. Meanwhile, another polio vaccination campaign is due next April.