As the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) prepares for another round of its flagship Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW), health authorities have set an ambitious target: reaching more than 1.5 million children with life-saving vaccines and essential health services.
The week-long exercise, scheduled for June 3 to June 7, will see health workers fan out across communities, schools, places of worship and hard-to-reach settlements to ensure that no eligible child is left behind.
Speaking during a media orientation ahead of the campaign, the Mandate Secretary of the FCT Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Dr Adedolapo Fasawe, said all arrangements had been concluded for the large-scale intervention.
Represented by the Acting Director of Primary Health Care at the Federal Capital Territory Primary Health Care Board (FPHCB), Dr Okoli Nicholas, Fasawe described the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week as a high-impact biannual programme designed to deliver critical healthcare services to families.
Beyond routine immunisation, the exercise will provide Vitamin A supplementation for children aged six to 59 months, deworming medication for children between 12 and 59 months, and nutrition screening to identify cases of malnutrition early.
Health workers will also offer counselling on infant feeding practices, hygiene and child care, measures health experts say are essential to improving child survival rates.
For expectant and nursing mothers, the programme promises a package of maternal health services, including antenatal and postnatal care, iron-folate supplementation, malaria prevention where necessary, breastfeeding support and newborn care counselling.
Family planning information and services will also be available during the outreach.
According to Fasawe, the intervention is aimed at strengthening maternal and child health outcomes across the territory and ensuring that vulnerable populations have access to basic healthcare services at no cost.
“All services offered during the exercise will be free of charge,” she said, stressing that beneficiaries would be attended to at Primary Health Care Centres in all six area councils, designated outreach points and remote communities served by mobile teams.
Parents have been encouraged to bring their children’s health cards for easy documentation, although those without cards will be issued new ones at the centres.
Fasawe also reassured families that children who had missed previous immunisation schedules would be welcomed.
“Zero-dose and defaulting children are welcome; no child will be turned away,” she said.
To expand coverage, mobile medical teams will visit schools, churches and mosques, a strategy designed to reach children whose caregivers may face difficulties accessing fixed health facilities.
State Nutrition Officer, Mrs Chinyere Ekwueme, said the outreach approach would help close immunisation gaps and ensure wider participation in the exercise.
Health officials are also banking on the media to drive awareness and combat misinformation that often undermines immunisation campaigns.
“The media’s role in this effort is pivotal. You help families know when and where to go. You build trust by sharing clear, verified information. You counter rumours with facts,” Fasawe said.
She urged journalists to take campaign messages beyond urban centres and into rural communities, informal settlements and nomadic populations through community radio, newspapers and social media platforms.
Echoing the call, the State Health Education Officer of the FPHCB, Mrs Umeh Chinyere, appealed to journalists to support efforts aimed at strengthening public confidence in healthcare programmes through accurate and balanced reporting.
As health workers prepare to deploy across the territory, officials remain optimistic that the campaign will not only boost immunisation coverage but also improve access to a range of services that could make a lasting difference in the lives of mothers and children.
For thousands of families across the FCT, the week represents more than a routine health exercise—it is an opportunity to secure a healthier start for the next generation.
