Addressing journalists on the second round of immunisation scheduled for 31 October to 3 November, communication officer at the immunisation unit of the Ministry of Health, Saharu Kanteh said: “Reports from independent monitors indicate that 71% of the Gambian populace heard about the campaign before it started. The report further stated that 28% of the population heard about NIDS from radio while the TV was able to inform 10% of the population.
He said the relatively high level of awareness on NIDS has a direct bearing on the overall performance of the campaign adding that out of 416,740 children targeted for the first round, 415,504 were vaccinated which constituted 99.7% of the target population.
He attributed the success of the first round thanks to the active involvement and commitment of the government of the Gambia, United Nations Agencies, NGOs and other development partners as well as the communities.
He added: “As long as a single child remains infected, children in all countries are at risk of contracting polio. Failure to eradicate polio from these last remaining strongholds could result in as many as 200,000 new cases every year within 10 years, all over the world.”
In the 2013 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index, The Gambia was listed as the 127 out of 177 countries and territories.
The list according to the compilers, serves as a reminder that the abuse of power, secret dealings and bribery continue to ravage societies around the world. They describe corruption as “a serious, worldwide problem”.
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