[Re: https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/every-parent-needs-access-reliable-info... ]
Dr Tedros's point lands squarely in my own research findings. My community health posting project in Kalambaina, Sokoto State, examined the prevalence and factors associated with maternal mortality and diphtheria in the community. Among the factors identified, vaccine refusal stood out: parents who declined routine childhood vaccination not from lack of access, but from religious conviction. The vaccines were available; the trust was not.
This is not an isolated pattern. Northern Nigeria carries the country's steepest immunization gaps: zero-dose prevalence in the North-West rose from 25.7% in 2021 to 47.4% in 2024, against roughly 4% in the South-East (Umar et al., 2025). Nationally, children receiving no vaccination at all rose from 19% to 30% between the 2018 and 2024 NDHS (Development Research and Projects Centre, 2024). Measles cases nearly doubled between 2024 and 2025 (Utazi et al., 2026). These are not abstract statistics; they are the children I saw in clinic.
What worked in Kalambaina was not confrontation but engagement sitting with parents, involving trusted local and religious voices, and addressing the specific belief rather than dismissing it. This mirrors what the Kaduna–Kano–Plateau literature shows: culturally and religiously sensitive messaging, delivered through clerics and traditional leaders rather than around them, moves acceptance where blanket campaigns fail (Agbede et al., 2024).
HIFA-Nigeria's role is to keep reliable, locally credible vaccine information in the hands of the community gatekeepers parents already trust ; clerics, PHC workers, traditional leaders not just in policy documents. Misinformation exploits the vacuum; sustained, culturally literate engagement is what actually closes it.
Nnamdi Umelo, HIFA Nigeria Country Coordinator
References
Agbede, G. T., Emezirinwune, D., Adedokun, T., & Idowu-Collins, P. (2024). Vaccine hesitancy in Nigeria: Overcoming cultural, linguistic and religious obstacles. Information Impact: Journal of Information and Knowledge Management, 15(1), 153–168. https://doi.org/10.4314/iijikm.v15i1.12
Development Research and Projects Centre. (2024). The 2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey summary and the health of Nigerians. https://drpcngr.org
Umar, H. J., Onah, S. I., Popoola, O., Jibril, H. H., & Oyewole, F. (2025). Widening geographical inequities in DTP vaccination coverage and zero-dose prevalence across Nigeria: An ecological trend analysis (2018–2024). Vaccines, 13(11), 1135. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines13111135
Utazi, C. E., Megheib, M., Olowe, I. D., Chaudhuri, S., Tejedor-Garavito, N., Mwinnyaa, G., Kawakatsu, Y., Boyda, D., Lorin, J., & Tatem, A. J. (2026). Mapping DTP1,3 and MCV1 coverage and zero-dose prevalence in Nigeria: A spatiotemporal analysis (2000–2024) [Preprint]. medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.01.19.26344414
HIFA profile: Nnamdi Umelo is a 5th Year Medical Student at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria. I have a strong interest in cancer research, public health, and global health policy. I believe that limited access to accurate, evidence based health information remains a major contributor to preventable illness and death, particularly in rural and underserved communities across Africa. I am passionate about health advocacy, promoting health literacy, and supporting equitable access to reliable healthcare information. Through HIFA, I hope to learn from a global network of professionals, contribute to discussions on improving access to health information, collaborate on research and advocacy initiatives, and apply the knowledge gained to strengthen health education and cancer awareness in my community and beyond. nnamdiumelo799 AT gmail.com