Kaduna fathers take lead in closing immunisation gaps

Fathers in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State have been urged to take a more active role in ensuring that children receive life-saving vaccines as health authorities intensify efforts to eliminate missed children from immunisation campaigns.

The call was made at the flag-off of the Fathers for Good Health (FGH), also known as Male Majalisa, which brought together 40 fathers from Igabi, Turunku, Panshanu and Gwaraji wards.

Speaking at the event, Dr Ibrahim Yisa of the National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), Kaduna, said the recent immunisation exercise recorded 98 per cent coverage of settlements and 86 per cent coverage of households in the local government.

He, however, said only 78 per cent of the targeted children were reached, indicating that some eligible children were still being missed despite the impressive household and settlement coverage.

Yisa said the gap prompted the introduction of additional vaccination activities in July to trace and immunise children who were missed during previous rounds.

He said the exercise also showed that community-based vaccination was critical, as 73 per cent of the vaccinated children during the March and April rounds were reached outside conventional vaccination points.

“Only 27 per cent were reached through the regular channels,” he said, stressing the need for health workers to continue taking vaccination services to households and hard-to-reach communities.

Yisa said the role of fathers was particularly important because Igabi recorded the only poliovirus case in Kaduna State between January and June 2026.

He urged the participating fathers to use their influence to encourage parents to present their children for vaccination and to support health workers during immunisation exercises.

The official also appealed to the Igabi Local Government Council and other stakeholders to provide stronger financial and logistical support for vaccination activities.

He commended the local government for its high settlement and household coverage, saying the achievement had attracted recognition from national authorities.

The Chairman of Igabi Local Government, Alhaji Sani Abdul, said involving fathers in immunisation advocacy would help address some of the barriers affecting children's access to vaccines.

According to him, many women are willing to take their children for vaccination, but the support of their husbands is sometimes required, particularly in communities where fathers have the final say on family healthcare decisions.

A UNICEF facilitator, Jamila Shehu, said the FGH initiative was designed to turn fathers and other community influencers into advocates for child health.

She said the programme would engage male household heads, traditional leaders and other influential persons through dialogue and community advocacy.

One of the participants, Mr Jamilu Alkali, a father of four from Gadan-Gayan in Panshanu Ward, pledged to mobilise fathers in his community to support routine immunisation.

Alkali said the orientation had equipped participants with information they could share with other parents on the importance of completing children's recommended vaccination schedules.

The initiative is being driven by the Kaduna State Primary Health Care Board with support from the United States Government and UNICEF.