Zamfara State has won a total sum of one million US dollars from Bill Gates and Dangote Foundation for recording zero polio case in two years.
This was announced by the foundations’ representative and head of Solina Group in Zamfara State, Dr Adesina Aladeshawe, during the maiden state’s routine immunisation working group meeting, yesterday, in Gusau.
He said each of the two foundations donated $500,000 (five hundred thousand US dollars) in line with their pledge of providing financial support to any state that maintained two consecutive years without any polio case.
The state recorded Zero polio case from 2013 to 2014 respectively.
He said Bill Gates and Dangote foundations were impressed with the collective efforts of state and partners working on routine immunisation in the state, expressing their support in strengthening routine immunisation activities across the state.
Adesina explained that the funds will be used in the procurement of solar refrigerators for 84 political wards that were identified with no single functional cold chain equipment, and construction of two satellite cold chain rooms in the other two senatorial zones headquarters- Talata Mafara and Kaura Namoda, with a view to ensuring total decentralisation of cold chain infrastructure in the state.
“Based on the data we generated from key stakeholders, the state has only 63 political wards with functional cold chain equipment while the remaining 84 political wards do not have functional cold chain equipment. The two foundations are interested in ensuring children are immunised wherever they are in Zamfara State.
Responding, the permanent secretary, ministry of health, Dr Lawal Umar Bungudu, expressed government’s commitment to strengthening routine immunisation in the state.
Some of the development partners that attended the meeting included WHO, UNICEF, Save the Children, and Centre for Diseases Control.
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