22 April 2002 -- Nigeria requires an estimated budget of about US$ 53.4 million to implement its polio eradication activities this year. The country and nine others, where wild poliovirus is still transmitted, have till the end of this year to stop its transmission, to pave way for eradication of polio and certification of a polio-free world in 2005.

However, of this amount, about US$ 38.4 million has been realised in actual funds and pledges from Government and its Partners in the Polio Eradication Initiative, leaving a funding gap of about US$15 million.

WHO Co-Sponsors The ZAAA 2002 Inter-Company Relay Under The Theme "Move For Health"

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20 March 2002 --The World Health Organization to-day handed over approximately 15 tons of life-saving tuberculosis ( TB ) drugs to the Republic of Kenya. These drugs worth over $ 200,000 US ( Kshs. 16,785,852.72 ) have been made available through a global partnership initiative, the Global Drug Facility (GDF) that was started early last year.

The WHO Representative to Kenya, Dr. Peter Eriki who spoke at the handing over ceremony, commended Kenya for being among the first 16 countries to qualify for this support from the Global Drug Facility.

13 March 2002 --For Nigeria to meet the global target of interrupting transmission of wild poliovirus by the end of this year, it has been recommended that the country conducts two rounds of Sub-National Immunization Days (SNIDs) in April and May. These will be done in the whole states of Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Kano and Jigawa as well as parts of Borno, Benue, Niger, Katsina, Kogi, Nasarawa, Kaduna and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), which are considered as high risk areas for polio transmission.

12 March 2002 -- In its continued efforts to find solutions to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the country, the Nigerian government, over the weekend, held a Presidential Forum on HIV/AIDS. Hosted by President Olusegun Obasanjo, the forum was attended by a number of dignitaries including former United States President Jimmy Carter; Co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Gates (Snr.); Professor Jeffrey Sachs; Dr. Helen Gayle and a former Nigerian President, Dr. Yakubu Gowon.

11 March 2002, Lusaka - The Ministry of Health and the Central Board of Health in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have began a major polio immunization exercise in the Western and North-Western Provinces in the country.

Brazzaville/Nairob, 8 February 2002: The UN agencies involved in the global effort to eradicate polio are helping to plan a major immunization drive in western Zambia and eastern Angola, in response to three polio cases virologically confirmed amongst Angolan refugees. Two joint World Health Organization / United Nations Children's Fund missions, one to Zambia and one to Angola, are joining the national ministries of health to determine if the virus has spread and to help plan the responsive polio vaccination campaign.

A total of 51 wild polioviruses were isolated from 16 states in Nigeria in 2001. The virus is responsible for cases of Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP). 33 of these were Type 1 while 18 were Type 3. Results of 20 other isolates sent to the Regional polio laboratory in Accra, Ghana for intra-typical differentiation are still being awaited.

THE INCIDENT 
An armoury at the Ikeja military cantonment in Lagos, Nigeria, containing "high calibre bombs" went up in flames at about 6.00 pm (local time) on Sunday, 27th January 2002, resulting in a series of explosions in and around the cantonment. The explosions affected areas up to 50 kms. away from the scene of the incident. Lagos is the economic nerve centre of Nigeria. It has an estimated population of between 10 and 12 million people. Two Local Government Areas - Ikeja and Oshodi/Isolo - with a population of about 1.03 million people were mostly affected.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is to spend about =N= 2.7 million this year to support State Epidemiology teams to implement Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) activities in the country. This was disclosed by the WHO Representative for Nigeria, Dr. Abdou Moudi at a recent meeting of State Epidemiologists and WHO Surveillance Officers, held in Kaduna.