Overcoming barriers: Nigerian government launches largest health campaign to protect 100 million children

Overcoming barriers: Nigerian government launches largest health campaign to protect 100 million children

Abuja (Core Reporters) The federal government of Nigeria has launched a massive health campaign targeting over 100 million children nationwide. The campaign, launched by First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, aims to provide vaccines and life-saving treatments for various diseases, including measles, rubella, polio, human papillomavirus (HPV), malaria and neglected tropical diseases.

The campaign is coordinated by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, through the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which places health at the heart of Nigeria’s human capital development and national renewal drive.

Speaking at the launch, the First Lady described the flag as “a statement of our collective determination as a nation to say ‘Never Again’ to the diseases that rob our sons and daughters of their future.”

He noted that measles and rubella remain among the leading causes of blindness, disability and infant mortality, adding that rubella infections during pregnancy can cause blindness, deafness or congenital heart defects in unborn children.

According to her, the initiative is in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritizes giving every Nigerian child a healthy start in life and ensuring that no mother dies during childbirth.

The initiative’s goals include: closing immunity gaps and interrupting disease transmission, improving the uptake of essential vaccines and treatments, protecting the future and building resilient communities, and ensuring that every child in Nigeria has a fair chance to live and thrive.

The initiative has received support from key development partners, including UNICEF, WHO, Gavi and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A statement by the ministry’s Deputy Director/Information and Public Relations Officer, Alaba Balogun, said Phase 1 will cover 19 Northern states, the Federal Capital Territory and Oyo State, while Phase 2 will cover Southern states from January to February 2026.

Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, who spoke at the awards ceremony, described the campaign as “a historic moment for Nigeria’s healthcare system”, adding that it represents one of the largest coordinated public health efforts on the African continent and, perhaps, anywhere in the world.

“This is not just a vaccination campaign. This is about reinventing how we provide health services to our population, ensuring that no one, no community and no child is left behind,” Pate said.

The minister stressed that the campaign reflects President Tinubu’s commitment to rebuilding trust in public institutions through the provision of healthcare that reaches the most vulnerable.

“The President is healing the nation, uniting our people through health and inspiring confidence that Nigeria can offer its citizens,” he added.

Pate praised the First Lady for her strong support of women’s and children’s health, describing her as “a mother to the nation” whose personal involvement in immunization, cervical cancer prevention and maternal health programs continues to strengthen national health outcomes.

Highlighting the Tinubu administration’s achievements in the healthcare sector, Prof. Pate revealed that primary healthcare utilization in Nigeria increased from 10 million visits per quarter in 2023 to 47 million in the second quarter of 2025, reflecting growing confidence in the system.

It also said that more than 15,000 women have benefited from the Free Emergency Obstetric Care Initiative, introduced under the Renewed Hope Agenda, while hundreds of thousands are enrolled in the Mothers and Babies Implementation (MaMi) Programme, a maternal care initiative that provides comprehensive support during pregnancy and childbirth.

“Thanks to the President’s leadership, our health system is being built from the ground up. We are expanding functional primary health centers, improving health worker motivation, and increasing insurance coverage to give families peace of mind,” Pate said.

Meanwhile, the government has shown a strong commitment to healthcare, with primary healthcare utilization increasing from 10 million visits per quarter in 2023 to 47 million in the second quarter of 2025.

– Over 15,000 women have benefited from the Free Emergency Obstetric Care Initiative and hundreds of thousands are enrolled in the Mothers and Babies Implementation (MaMi) program ¹ ².