As the world commemorated World Immunisation Week 2025 with the hopeful theme, “Immunisation for all is humanly possible,” Nigeria was faced with a sobering reality: 2.1 million children across the country remain unvaccinated. These so-called “zero-dose” children—infants who have not received even a single routine immunisation—now place Nigeria at the top of a global list no nation should lead.
This is not merely an unfortunate statistic; it is a national emergency with devastating implications.
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), which disclosed these figures during a media dialogue in Yobe State, 24 percent of Nigerian children under one year of age are missing all critical vaccinations. Diseases long preventable—measles, polio, meningitis, yellow fever—are now making a dangerous comeback, with children as their easiest targets.
The reasons for this failure are complex but not insurmountable. Conflict, climate change, pandemic-related disruption, and the remoteness of some communities certainly pose significant challenges. Yet, the scale of this crisis also points to a failure of health systems, accountability, and political prioritisation.
Yobe and Borno states, among the hardest hit, illustrate both the gravity of the problem and the resilience of intervention. UNICEF’s vaccination of 145,000 children in Borno and 20,000 in Yobe, along with the broader “Big Catch-Up” campaign that reached 138,000 children across the North-East, demonstrates what is possible with focused effort and adequate support. But stopgap campaigns, however admirable, are not enough.
A sustainable solution must address the structural decay in Nigeria’s primary healthcare delivery. Health centres without cold-chain facilities, workers without training or resources, and communities without trust or information form the perfect storm in which vaccine-preventable diseases flourish.
There must be a shift from sporadic campaigns to systemic investment. The time has come for the Nigerian government to prioritise immunisation as a matter of national security. Because when a quarter of our infants are left defenceless against deadly but preventable diseases, it is not just their futures at stake, it is ours as a nation.
Traditional leaders, like the Emir of Damaturu, have rightly pledged their commitment. But more is needed. Vaccine access must be guaranteed in every corner of Nigeria, whether urban slum or remote village. Health workers must be empowered, not exhausted. And public awareness must be sustained far beyond a commemorative week in April.
Immunisation for all is humanly possible. But only if Nigeria stops treating vaccination as a seasonal programme and starts viewing it as a moral, medical, and national imperative.