Ten children have died due to a suspected measles outbreak in Damangaza community in Lokogoma District, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Head of the Damangaza community, Mr James Budebo, disclosed this during a one-day outreach programme on Friday in Abuja.
He said the recent deaths were due to the suspected measles outbreak, adding that there have been challenges to vaccine acceptance within the community.
CEO of VNDC, Mrs Chika Offor, said the one-day outreach programme was crucial adding that it was aimed at providing immediate assistance and laying the groundwork for long-term community resilience.
She said the deaths due to measles were preventable, adding that the organisation was committed to supporting community dialogue on vaccination and public health measures.
Offor said efforts were to promote vaccine accessibility and provide clear, accurate information to address community concerns and misconceptions.
The Head of Damangaza Hausawa, Chief Bello Musa, said the Public Health Department, FCT, had been notified of the situation, with previous visits made two weeks ago.
Responding, FCT Epidemiologist, Dr Teresa Nwachukwu, said she would investigate the current situation.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has revealed that Abia, Anambra, Jigawa, Edo, Lagos,and Bauchi accounted for a significant portion of reported measles cases by December 2023.
As of December 2023, specific states such as Abia (46), Anambra (23), Jigawa (21), Edo (18), Lagos (17), and Bauchi (14) collectively accounted for 64.6% of the 215 suspected measles cases reported.
Among these, 33 cases (15.4%) were confirmed, with no clinically compatible cases, while 43 cases (20%) were discarded and 139 cases (64.6%) were pending classification.
During the period from January to December 2023, major contributors to the 19,470 suspected measles cases included Borno (7,635), Yobe (1,325), Ogun (611), and Zamfara (601), with Lagos also significant at 563 cases, making up 52.2 per cent of the total.
Of these suspected cases, 11,433 (58.72%) were confirmed, comprising 1,861 lab-confirmed, 3,120 epi-linked, and 6,452 clinically compatible cases.
The age group 9 – 59 months accounted for 7,317 (64%) of all confirmed cases.
