By Bashir Hassan Abubakar
The ongoing Integrated Vaccination Campaign in Bauchi State, which commenced last Saturday, is already recording impressive success across communities, thanks to the strong collaboration between government agencies, development partners, and community resource groups.
At the Umar Faruk School premises in Azare, Katagum Local Government Area, vaccination teams 004 and 006 were seen busy administering life-saving vaccines to scores of children and adolescents.
The exercise, which runs simultaneously across all the 20 local government areas of Bauchi State, targets children for multiple interventions — Routine Immunization (0–23 months), Measles-Rubella (9 months–14 years), Polio (0–59 months), Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for 9-year-old girls, as well as treatments for Malaria through Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) and selected Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs).
According to Ruth Aminu, a member of the Management Support Team from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), the campaign’s implementation has been largely smooth.
“Apart from little lapses here and there from some teams—which were immediately addressed through on-the-spot retraining—the exercise is going on well as expected,” she said.
Partners and Community Structures Driving Results
The remarkable turnout witnessed in Azare and other parts of the state is being attributed to extensive mobilization efforts coordinated by the Bauchi State Primary Health Care Development Agency (BASPHCDA) with the support of partners such as UNICEF, WHO, AFENET, Chigari Foundation, Gates and Dangote Foundations, and several local civil society organizations.
A key factor in this success has been the involvement of community resource groups such as UNICEF’s Fathers for Good Health (F4H), Mama2Mama volunteers, and Volunteer Community Mobilizers (VCMs). These groups have been instrumental in building trust and awareness at the grassroots level.
Khamisu Isa Maianguwa, an F4H volunteer, explained that the recent diphtheria outbreak in some communities had also prompted caregivers to embrace vaccination more eagerly. “Even before the campaign began, we were meeting with male caregivers in mosques, churches, markets, and homes, educating them on why it is important to protect their children,” he said.
Similarly, Maijidda Suleiman, a Volunteer Community Mobilizer, said that while F4H focuses mainly on engaging men, her group targets mothers directly in their homes. “We enlighten them on the importance of bringing out their children for the 10-day vaccination exercise,” she noted, adding that such house-to-house enlightenment has significantly boosted participation.
Changing Perceptions — One Caregiver at a Time
The impact of these grassroots mobilization efforts is evident in stories like that of Mallam Samaila Shehu, a male caregiver from Azare. Before this campaign, all three of his children had never received any form of vaccination. “The Fathers for Good Health explained to me the dangers of not vaccinating and the benefits of protecting my children. “I became convinced and decided to bring them to the health facility,” he shared emotionally at the Yankaji Comprehensive Primary Health Centre.
Supervisors of the vaccination teams in Azare confirmed that such transformations are becoming more common. They attributed the steady rise in turnout to the trust built through consistent engagement by community resource groups before and during the campaign.
Community Institutions Lending Support
At the Umar Faruk School, Headmistress Malama Ummi Abdullahi revealed that the school management had sought and obtained parental consent through the PTA to vaccinate eligible pupils. She commended the Bauchi State Government and its partners for their efforts and appealed that teachers be more directly involved in future campaigns.
“Teachers are trusted by both parents and pupils. Involving us fully in such campaigns will strengthen confidence in the process,” she said.
UNICEF’s Encouragement and Optimism
During a visit to a fixed post site, Mr. Pachanan Achari, UNICEF’s Polio Social Behavioural Change Manager for Polio Outbreak Countries, interacted with volunteers and caregivers to assess progress and encourage community champions.
After listening to Mallam Samaila’s testimony, Achari described the community mobilization as “a genuine service to humanity” and urged caregivers to sustain the momentum by becoming advocates for immunization in their communities.
With nearly four million doses of vaccines deployed across Bauchi State and robust technical and logistical support from implementing partners, public health stakeholders are optimistic. The state is well on track to surpass its target of reaching over two million eligible children with life-saving vaccines before the end of the ten-day campaign.
As the campaign continues, the renewed trust between communities, caregivers, and vaccination teams offers a glimpse of a healthier future for Bauchi’s children — one protected jab at a time.