Nigeria holds the global record for the highest number of zero-dose children, with approximately 2.1 million children under the age of one lacking any routine vaccinations, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). This troubling statistic was shared during a media dialogue in Damaturu, marking the 2025 World Immunisation Day.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

UNICEF Health Officer, Bashir Elegbede, pointed out that this issue is particularly pronounced in Nigeria’s North-East, especially in Borno and Yobe States. These regions account for a disproportionate number of unvaccinated children. Elegbede noted that, out of the estimated 8.7 million children under the age of one in Nigeria, 24 percent, or 2.1 million, are zero-dose children. He emphasized that reducing this number is essential for improving public health outcomes in the country.

The lack of vaccination among children in the North-East is attributed to various challenges, including conflict, climate change, the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the geographical inaccessibility of certain areas. Additionally, pastoral communities, urban outskirts, and slums, as well as areas already facing systemic health issues, are severely impacted.

Elegbede further warned that unvaccinated children are highly susceptible to deadly diseases such as polio, measles, meningitis, yellow fever, and viral hepatitis. He stressed the urgent need for vaccination as a fundamental health strategy, noting that vaccines have saved millions of lives globally.

The goal, he explained, is to reduce the number of zero-dose children by 25 percent by 2025 and by 50 percent by 2030. UNICEF has been collaborating with Nigerian authorities to improve immunisation coverage and strengthen health systems to address these disparities.

In response to this challenge, UNICEF’s volunteer community mobilisers in Yobe have successfully reduced non-compliance with immunisation efforts to under 1 percent. Additionally, interventions in Borno have reached 145,000 zero-dose children, and more efforts are planned, including Big Catch-Up campaigns in March and April 2025 to vaccinate additional children in the region.

As World Immunisation Week concludes, Elegbede called for renewed commitment to vaccine equity, stressing that immunisation is one of humanity’s greatest achievements. He emphasized that while access to life-saving vaccines may not be equal for all, concerted efforts by the Nigerian government and its partners are vital to ensuring that every child is protected.