Nigerian youths seek sustainable immunization financing plan

Nigerian Youths have called on the Federal Government to develop a sustainable domestic plan for Vaccine Financing as Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance begins its five year exit plan from vaccine financing support for the country.
The position was made known  at the end of a 2-day Routine Immunisation Youth Champions retreat put together by Community Health and Research Initiative (CHR) through Partnership for Advocacy in Child and Family Health (PACFaH).
Among issues discussed and resolutions reached at the end of the retreat was the recently approved $125m World Bank Loan to finance 2017 Polio Eradication Programme, and other Routine Immunisation Vaccines, but stressed the need for government’s ownership of Immunization financing, without dependence on loans and donors support.
The youths, representing a coalition of CHR-PACFaH CSOs from Bauchi, Kaduna, Kano Niger and National called for recovered monies to fund pressing health issues and strengthening of Primary Healthcare Centers.
They urged government to increase budgetary allocation to immunisation during the Gavi Transition period to bridge funding gaps as well as provide innovative financing through taxes.
 They called for full implementation of  recommendations contained in the Addis Declaration on Immunization Financing ratified by 54 African Ministers of Health during the 2016 Ministerial Conference on Immunisation in Addis Ababa, recently and endorsed by African Heads of States at the 70th World Health Assembly,
The youths who are members of Kaduna State Accountability Mechanism for MNCH (KADMAM), Bauchi State Accountability Mechanism for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (BASAM), Accountability Mechanism for Maternal Newborn and Child Health in Kano State (AMMKaS), Civil Society on Maternal Newborn and Child Health in Niger State (COMiN), and TrackHealth National Accountability Mechanism (T-NAM), also saw the need for Nigeria to create an immunization trust fund.