United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has advocated the scale-up of the Fathers for Good Health support group to all local government areas of Bauchi State to mobilise communities towards accepting Routine Immunisation and addressing zero-dose cases among children.
UNICEF’s Social Behaviour Specialist, Bauchi Field Office, Mr Eki George, made the call while commenting on the activities of the community support group during an interaction with journalists in Bauchi.
Mr George said the call became necessary considering the group’s contribution to Routine Immunisation in 113 wards across seven LGAs, where they mobilised 9,252 communities and reached 109,444 children with different antigens.
He explained that the group was introduced in 2024 and piloted in Misau and Ningi LGAs, which are among the thirteen zero-dose areas out of the twenty LGAs in the state.
According to him, Fathers for Good Health is an initiative of the State Primary Health Care Development Agency in collaboration with UNICEF, Bauchi Field Office, borne out of a Rapid Assessment using the Human-Centred Design Approach, which produced key findings and recommendations.
He noted that one recommendation was to target men, who often hold the final say on whether their children should be vaccinated, as a strategy to tackle zero-dose challenges.
The Social Behaviour Specialist disclosed that the group, comprising 1,030 members across the LGAs, was tasked with engaging such men to rethink their stance and consider the future of their children.
Mr George, who acknowledged support to UNICEF from the Canadian government, emphasised the need for the state to sustain the initiative, recalling Governor Bala Mohammed’s 2024 pledge to expand the programme to all twenty LGAs.
He added that the Fathers for Good Health group has demonstrated strong commitment and passion by voluntarily using and fuelling their personal motorcycles to reach remote villages with vital messages on immunisation and other health concerns.
By Murtala Muhammad