A vaccination campaign to halt the number of cases of measles – targeted at reaching thousands of residents, internally displaced persons and those living in host communities – started on Monday in Maiduguri and its environs.

Muhammad Kashim, a health worker at the New GRA Clinic in Maiduguri, said he was relieved to hear the campaign had begun.

“It’s the only way we will get control of this virus which is spreading rapidly.”

He said about 3-million children would be vaccinated during the campaign.

It was urgently needed, particularly in the small town of Zabarmari where more than 1,000 children had fallen ill and the outbreak was growing and had been described as an epidemic, he said.

“Many children have fallen ill in internally displaced persons’ camps where measles, because of the congestion, spreads easily and quickly from house to house,” Kashim said.

When such an outbreak emerges, parents should separate infected children from healthy ones until they have recovered. An infected child must be fed nutritious meals and should be kept in a cool, well-ventilated area.”

Kashim said: “I’m pleased the anti-measles campaign has begun – we need to save our children’s lives. This is a matter of urgency and I am relieved it is being taken seriously.”

Local clinics and hospitals are working on the campaign with Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) − also known as Doctors Without Borders − and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

MSF, the international medical humanitarian organisation, said measles was extremely contagious and serious. It was especially dangerous for young children and could even be fatal.

MSF reported that the first child with measles was admitted on December 3 2020 at Gwange Paediatric Hospital in Maiduguri but said the number of patients had increased dramatically.

Between January and April 3, MSF had admitted 1,158 children with measles at Gwange but said there were measles patients − mostly children − at other hospitals in the region.

Statistics showed that 58% of the children admitted to Gwange were from Zabarmari, a settlement of 45,000 people, about 20km from Maiduguri.

Borno State has had repeated measles epidemics in the past decade. In 2019, eight local government areas of Borno State were affected and MSF treated 4,000 children in Gwange and Bama hospitals.

MSF said several factors, particularly the frequent attacks in the region by insurgents, had contributed to the epidemic.

Routine vaccinations were not carried out because, according to health authorities, more than 60% of health centres were closed or unable to function properly because of conflict in the region. Attacks by insurgents had forced out some aid organisations that had been providing healthcare in remote areas, it said.