By VICTORIA OJEME

ABUJA-National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, will next Monday commence use of a new vaccine against Cerebrospinal Meningitis, CSM, as part of measures to stop out breaks in the country.

Head of Accelerated Disease and Control at NPHCDA, Mr. Mohammed Adamu, who said this, Monday, in Abuja, added that the first phase slated for between December 5 and December 14 will benefit over 17 million people in five northern states -Zamfara, Katsina, Jigawa Bauchi and Gombe- identified as high priority areas.

Adamu stated that by the end of the second phase, which will target 14 states by next year, NPHCDA  hoped to have immunised 79.5 million people, translating into nearly 70 per cent of the country’s population, between age one and 29.

“Once we are able to vaccinate this age, we will be able to reduce drastically, the number of CSM cases we record in the country,” Adamu said.

He added that the MenAfriVac confers immunity for up to 10 years, whereas conventional vaccine against CSM can only provide immunity for two years.

Meningitis, caused by a bacterium, Neisseria meningitides, occurs in some 26 states, including the FCT, which make up the meningitis belt in Nigeria.

At least 90% of all cases in the country are caused by group A of the bacterium, which MenAfriVac  has been designed to target.

.A total 38,128 personnel will work in the 10-day vaccination exercise  in 4,766 designated vaccination posts.

This is the second CSM vaccination campaign in Africa’s meningitis belt, involving Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon, after the first phase last year spanned Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.