. . . Urges mass vaccination

By JOHN NWOKOCHA, Abuja

Latest report from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) indicates that number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) residing in camps and host communities across the country is about three million.

Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, Federal Commissioner, made the disclosure on Thursday in Abuja at the flag-off of the mass vaccination for “our Persons of Concern in Nigeria.”

He said: “According to the UNHCR, current statistics reveal that between 2020 till date, there has been a sharp increase in the number of displacements by about a million, bringing the total number of internal displaced persons to about 3 million residing in camps and host communities across the country.

“There are also about 73,000 registered refugees from over 23 countries residing in Nigeria. These statistics signifies a 1.7 per cent value of the nation’s population yet to be vaccinated.”

He noted that access to vaccines on an equitable basis was important to limiting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said that IDPs were more vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic, explaining that:

“These Persons of Concern have had their livelihoods eroded by both man-made and natural disasters such as protracted fighting, insecurity, communal clashes, and the consequences of climate change, leaving them more vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic's larger impact.

“The majority of them lack access to an adequate health care system and are stigmatized as a result of their situation. This is why the Commission is collaborating with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency to ensure that COVID Vaccines reach these vulnerable Persons of Concern.”

He said that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on nearly every aspect of lives, adding that “vaccines will undoubtedly enable society to revert to 'normalcy' and restrictions continue to ease.

“To this end, I want to encourage our Persons of Concern who are 18 years and above to take full advantage of this initiative and get vaccinated, because according to experts, by getting vaccinated, you break the chain of disease transmission, you reduce mutations and Variants of the virus, you protect others, and even if you become ill, the severity of sickness is usually mild and does not require hospitalization.”

The National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons is the Federal government agency mandated to provide care and support to all Persons of Concern, such as the IDPs, Refugees, Migrants, Asylum Seekers, Stateless Persons and Returnees.

The Commission is collaborating with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency in the mass vaccination exercise.