By Ojoma Akor
The United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC) says
It is working with the Government of Nigeria and other stakeholders to provide technical and financial support to Nigeria’s effort to eliminate measles.
Dr Joseph Forbi, an epidemiologist with US CDC , Nigeria made the disclosure Tuesday in Abuja during a media roundtable organized by US CDC.
He said the US CDC is supporting the country’s preparation for the 2025/2026 mass vaccination catch-up campaign , adding that it has helped Nigeria to obtain a Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance grant to vaccinate over 100 million children ages 9 months to 15 years against measles across the country.
He said, “We are targeting over 100 million children. The government cannot do this alone. We are working in collaboration with our partners like Gavi. We have been in alliance with them and we have supported a huge sum of money for the upcoming campaign. So far Gavi has put almost $33 million to support this upcoming campaign.”
Dr Forbi said US CDC assisted Nigeria with the development of the National Measles and Rubella Elimination Strategic Plan 2030.
He said the organisation has also supported the federal government of Nigeria in strengthening measles surveillance and outbreak response efforts to detect, respond to, and end measles outbreaks rapidly .
“The U.S. CDC is helping the Government of Nigeria respond to outbreaks, with the goals of increasing vaccination rates and stopping the spread of the virus,” he stated.
He said it was also supporting the use of GIS mapping to enhance the campaigns microplanning and supervision of mass vaccination campaigns to attain targeted results .
He also said the organization was helping to prepare for the fall 2025 measles-rubella vaccination campaign, which will be the largest injectable-vaccine campaign ever conducted.
US CDC also helped Nigeria improve the country’s laboratory diagnostics through ongoing support to eight laboratories to strengthen their capacity to diagnose measles and rubella and to help end outbreaks, he said.
Dr Forbi added that US CDC also provided technical support for mass vaccination campaigns in 2023 and 2024 across 26 states for children 9-59 months.
According to the epidemiologist , measles is a major cause of childhood illness and death worldwide, with Nigeria being among the top 10 countries reporting measles cases globally.
He explained that in 2024, Nigeria reported over 20,000 suspected cases with approximately 10,000 confirmed cases mostly among unvaccinated and under-vaccinated children.
He said, “immunization coverage is low in Nigeria, with only 60% of children getting their first dose of measles vaccine on schedule. Currently, three million children are unprotected.
“Following the COVID-19 pandemic, all states in Nigeria have experienced measles outbreaks, and many are ongoing.”
He further said the federal government is working towards introducing the measles-rubella vaccine in the country in October this year to boost population immunity and fast-track efforts towards measles elimination among others.
While challenges remain, he said the efforts by the Government of Nigeria, in combination with support from the U.S. CDC and other partners, are showing progress.
He said, “Compared to the same time in 2024, the number of measles cases in the first five months of 2025 have shown a decline. If progress is sustained, Nigeria can accelerate its efforts to controlling and ultimately eliminating measles in the country. ”
Patricia Tanifum, Programme Director of the CDC Nigeria GID, said while Nigeria is slightly behind in the goal of eliminating measles and rubella by 2030, she said it has however made real progress.
She called for continued collaboration with stakeholders, including the Federal Ministry of Health, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), and others .
She said, “Our shared goal is to ensure that no child dies from a disease we can prevent.”
