Polio vaccinations delayed in Nigeria
10/03/2010
A polio vaccination campaign in Nigeria has been delayed because of outbreaks of violence.
The scheme has been put back to March 13th in the city of Jos as fighting has broken out for the second time this year, Irin News reports.
According to the portal, hundreds have been killed in this latest wave of attacks, which adds to the devastation caused by disturbances in January - where around 20,000 people were removed from their homes.
Matthew Dabup, the government's polio immunisation manager in Plateau State, said: "We needed more time to plan because of the displacement that happened after the previous violence."
The drive is to be a week-long regional effort to vaccinate at least 85 million children against the disease in West Africa.
Fears over food shortages in the country were also recently aired, as large numbers of famers from the south have migrated north in search of employment.
Written by Simon Bassett
