To boost maternal, child health: Nationwide health, nutrition campaign launched in Douala.

This effort combines the first Round of the Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition Action Week (SASNIM) with the second Round of the National Polio Vaccination Days (JNV2). It aligns with a synchronised regional campaign involving neighbouring Lake Chad Basin countries such as Nigeria, Chad, and the Central African Republic.

The campaign was officially launched on May 28. It is in partnership with the World Health Organisation, Keller Hellen International, amongst other NGOs.

The launching was presided by the Governor of Littoral Region, Samuel Dieudonné Ivaha Diboua, in the presence of health authorities.

The initiative emerges in response to the rising threat of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), which has continued to affect both humans and the environment in Cameroon, despite the country being declared free of wild poliovirus in June 2020. 

The campaign also seeks to address lingering public questions, such as the relevance of continued polio vaccinations despite the country’s wild poliovirus-free status. Authorities stress that the persistent circulation of variant strains and regional outbreaks necessitates regular immunisation. 

Concerns about repeated vaccinations being harmful have also been dispelled, as experts emphasise that multiple doses strengthen immunity without any adverse effects.

Speaking at the launch, Governor Ivaha Diboua called on parents to have their children administered the vaccine.

On his part, Dr Bokayako Mozon, WHO Country Representative, said: “Now we have been coming across some cases of derived poliovirus in some parts of the country. So, we need to strengthen our response and to immunise all children in the country”.

The renewed wave of infections, according to health practitioners, highlights the urgent need for reinforced vaccination efforts, especially considering decreasing immunity against type 2 poliovirus, population movements across borders, recent virus detections, and the high prevalence in the Far North Region. 

To this end, the government and its partners have planned two rounds of vaccination with the novel oral poliovirus vaccine type 2 (nOPV2), the first of which was completed in April this year. The second round seeks to stop the transmission of poliovirus variants and prevent future outbreaks in non-endemic countries by 2028.

"This second phase is for those who weren't vaccinated up in the first round, and it allows us to strengthen their immunity,” Fankam Kamgam, health practitioner and supervisor of the campaign in the Bonassama Health Centre, stated. 

As regards the strategy her team is to undertake, she said: “The strategy we've adopted to not miss a single child is the block strategy, meaning with my teams, we do door-to-door campaign, we don't skip any house. We're on the ground, it's a team effort... That's the strategy we've put in place to not miss a single child".

Health campaign objectives 

In tandem with the polio response, the campaign, rooted in the National Development Strategy, SND30, targets children under five and pregnant women with a package of high-impact health interventions. 

These include Vitamin A supplementation for children aged six to 59 months, deworming for those aged 12 to 59 months, and Intermittent Preventive Treatment, IPT, of malaria for pregnant women starting from their 13th week of gestation.

The overarching goal is to significantly reduce maternal and child morbidity and mortality. It aspires to achieve key benchmarks, including 100% vaccination of children under five against polio, Vitamin A supplementation for at least 95% of eligible children, and IPT coverage of at least 60% among pregnant women. 

It also aims to ensure effective communication, engage communities, manage vaccine logistics, identify and refer missed children, and enhance disease surveillance, especially for conditions such as Acute Flaccid Paralysis, AFP, measles, yellow fever, neonatal tetanus, cholera, and monkeypox.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3462 of Monday June 02, 2025