Abuja, 22 April 2016 - Nigeria has successfully conducted the ‘switch’ from using trivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (tOPV) to bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (bOPV) in the routine immunization programme. The switch is pursuant to the end game strategy following the global certification of eradication of Type 2 polio virus in 2015.

Nigeria is one of the 149 countries expected to switch from tOPV to bOPV use in routine immunization during a two-week window period from 14 to 30 April, 2016. The National Switch Committee under from the coordination of the National Polio Emergency Operation Centre chose 18 April, 2016 as the historic date for the switch in Nigeria.    

In preparation for the switch, several activities were conducted including constitution of state and LGA Switch Committees, training of health workers and independent monitors, constitution of a National Switch Validation Committee and deployment of switch validation teams in each state as well as distribution of bOPV to service delivery points. Over 60 supervisors were deployed to the state level to support the switch process while 311 independent monitors and 37 state independent monitoring coordinators were also engaged for the validation exercise which commenced on 19 April, 2016. 

Already, preliminary reports indicate that a lot of goodwill continues to hail the process in most states.

The Permanent Secretary in the Abia State Ministry of Health, emphatically told health workers that the government  will ensure achievement of  the overall goal of the ‘switch’. He further assured that the government is committed to compliance with all the processes involved in the ‘switch’.

Reports from Ekiti revealed that the state in collaboration with WHO, launched the ‘switch’ in Ado local government area (LGA), during which the Executive Secretary (ES) of the State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Mr. Abike Adewole said “believe me when I tell you that vaccines protect not just individuals but entire communities as well from imminent danger”. He acknowledged that the State depended on the support of WHO and other partners.

In Taraba, both state and LGA teams undertook active case search for tOPV prior to the switch date to ensure that no tOPV was available in any LGA cold store or health facility for use after the switch date. The search turned up 550 unopened vials of tOPV in two (2) LGAs.

Preliminary independent reports from the field indicate that success was recorded with minimal challenges with the switch. “Not a single tOPV vial found in the field, all facilities and outreaches had access to sufficient bOPV and IPV”, stated Rudolf Eggers from WHO/HQ during a monitoring visit to Ondo State, Nigeria. Independent monitors are currently completing the validation process in all states.WHO and partners plan to disseminate recommendations and lessons learnt from the process.

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For more information, please contact:

Technical contacts:

Dr Fiona Braka; Tel: +234 703 170 5252; Email:  brakaf [at] who.int
Mr Mohammed Abdulaziz; Tel: +234 803 960 0879; Email:  mohammedabd [at] who.int

Media contact:

Ms  Charity Warigon; Tel: +234 810 221 0093; Email:  warigonc [at] who.int

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Below:

01 Retrieved tOPV vials waiting for boil and bury in Abia

02 Ekiti ES launching the ‘switch’ with vaccination using bOPV

03 tOPV disposal site