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News Sport Weather World Service Languages Low Graphics version | Change edition About BBC News | Feedback | Help News Front Page Africa Americas Asia-Pacific Europe Middle East South Asia UK Business Health Science/Nature Technology Entertainment ----------------- Have Your Say In Pictures Week at a Glance Country Profiles In Depth Programmes LANGUAGES MORE > Last Updated: Saturday, 2 October, 2004, 19:00 GMT 20:00 UK E-mail this to a friend Printable version Nigeria spearheads polio campaign Kano officials had been unhappy with the vaccine Nigeria has launched fresh efforts to stamp out polio as part of a campaign that aims to immunise more than 80 million children in 23 African states. President Olusegun Obasanjo said it was the responsibility of African nations to build a polio-free continent. He was speaking in the northern state of Kano where he administered oral vaccine drops to young children. Earlier opposition to the vaccine in Kano is blamed for the resurgence and spread of polio in the region. The campaign which begins in earnest in a week's time will be the biggest cross-border public health drive ever, the UN says. It hopes the campaign will help salvage the World Health Organization's goal of eradicating the disease by 2005. Children at risk "Let us pride ourselves on a polio-free Africa and Nigeria," Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo told a packed stadium in Kano. He then tipped drops of vaccine into the mouth of the one-year-old daughter of the Kano state governor. After a ban in Kano, immunisation efforts resumed there in July but only reached 60% of children. Islamic clerics in Nigeria's Kano region had said the vaccines were part of a Western plot to make Muslim women infertile - something that was strongly denied by the WHO. The virus - which mainly strikes children under the age of five - has spread to 12 polio-free countries over the past 18 months. "The ban on immunisation in Kano was a key factor in allowing the virus to spread back into polio-free parts of Africa," Kent Page, a spokesman for UN children's fund Unicef in West and Central Africa, told Reuters. Polio, which is caused by a virus that invades the nervous system through contaminated drinking water, can result in paralysis or death. The first wave of vaccinations will begin later this month, with a second wave in November and further rounds throughout 2005, officials say. E-mail this to a friend Printable version LINKS TO MORE AFRICA STORIES SelectItaly sends back island migrantsKenyan prisoners beaten to deathAfrica fails in IMF vote demandUgandan parents await abducteesLocusts invade Mauritania capitalFine for Ugandan radio gay showNigeria spearheads polio campaignBody exhumed in Kenya rape probeTrio join World Cup raceBand Aid star returns to AfricaNigeria Delta rebels agree truceThousands more troops for DarfurUN to boost DR Congo peace forceLiberia refugees return homeEU backs African asylum projectNigerians find little anniversary cheerWho are Sudan's Darfur rebels?Desperate measures in ZimbabweCan women save the planet?Do you have a story to tell?Send us your pictures of AfricaProgrammes and schedules  SEE ALSO: Polio epidemic warning for Africa 22 Jun 04  |  Health Nigerian state thwarts polio push 22 Mar 04  |  Africa Q&A: Nigerian fears threaten polio drive 23 Feb 04  |  Africa WHO moves to calm polio fears 20 Jan 04  |  Africa Polio cases on the increase 25 Apr 03  |  Health WHO adopts new polio strategy 13 May 03  |  Health RELATED INTERNET LINKS: Global Polio Eradication Initiative World Health Organization UN Children's Fund The Last Child The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites TOP AFRICA STORIES NOW Italy sends back island migrants Kenyan prisoners beaten to death Africa fails in IMF vote demand Ugandan parents await abductees News alerts | E-mail services | Desktop ticker | Mobiles/PDAs Back to top ^^ News Front Page | Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East | South Asia UK | Business | Entertainment | Science/Nature | Technology | Health Have Your Say | In Pictures | Week at a Glance | Country Profiles | In Depth | Programmes BBC Homepage >> | BBC Sport >> | BBC Weather >> | BBC World Service >> About BBC News | Help | Feedback | News sources | Privacy & Cookies Policy | About the BBC

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