About 93 per cent of children affected by diphtheria in Nigeria were either unvaccinated or had not completed their recommended vaccination schedules, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has disclosed.
The revelation highlights gaps in routine childhood immunisation as diphtheria cases and deaths continue to be reported across the country.
The Executive Director of the NPHCDA, Dr Muyi Aina, disclosed this during a media briefing, noting that confirmed cases had been recorded in 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
He identified Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Plateau, Sokoto and Yobe among the states most affected by the outbreak.
Aina said the Federal Government was working with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention NCDC and state governments to strengthen outbreak response measures, including house-to-house vaccination campaigns in affected communities.
He urged parents and guardians to ensure their children receive routine immunisations and complete the recommended doses, stressing that vaccination remains a critical measure for preventing diphtheria and other vaccine-preventable diseases.
The NPHCDA chief also expressed concern over vaccine hesitancy, noting that resistance to immunisation was not limited to particular communities. He called for sustained public awareness and stronger efforts to ensure children have access to routine vaccination.
Beyond the diphtheria response, Aina urged state and local governments to take greater responsibility for maintaining primary healthcare centres and employing permanent health workers.
He disclosed that more than 500 primary healthcare centres had been directly equipped by the Federal Government, while nearly 4,400 facilities had been revitalised through combined efforts involving different levels of government, development partners and other stakeholders.
He explained that state and local governments are primarily responsible for primary healthcare service delivery and facility maintenance, while the NPHCDA focuses on setting standards, coordinating support and strengthening the primary healthcare system.
On maternal healthcare, Aina reported an increase in the number of women attending their fourth antenatal care visit, from about 598,000 per quarter in 2023 to approximately 830,000 in 2025.
Skilled birth attendance also rose from 483,000 to nearly 700,000 per quarter during the same period.
According to him, facility-based maternal mortality declined by 17 per cent during the first year of a targeted intervention in 172 local government areas. Further data on the programme’s outcomes are expected at the government’s Joint Annual Review in November.
Aina also highlighted challenges with Nigeria’s malaria vaccination programme, revealing that only about 20 to 30 per cent of children who received the first dose returned for the fourth and final dose.
He said the government was considering the cost of the vaccine and the need to improve completion rates as it assesses plans to expand the programme to additional states.