Nigeria has gone three years without a case of polio, putting it on the brink of being declared free of the disease.
This is a dramatic change from 2012 when the country accounted for more than half of all polio cases worldwide, the World Health Organization has said.
The head of the primary health care agency, Dr Faisal Shuaib, said Nigeria had reached a "historic milestone".
But it will be several months before the country can officially be labelled polio-free.
The first criteria, no case for three years, has been achieved.
But now the WHO needs to make sure there is a robust surveillance system in Nigeria to be certain that there are no further cases of the wild polio virus, chairman of Nigeria's polio committee, Dr Tunji Funsho, told BBC Newsday.
Nigeria is the last country in Africa to have witnessed a case of polio - in Borno state, in the north-east. Outside of Nigeria, the last case on the continent was in the Puntland region of Somalia, in 2014.
Insecurity in the north-east of Nigeria had hindered the polio vaccination programme, but success in fighting the Boko Haram militant group has been cited as one of the reasons behind getting polio under control.
In addition, officials have said that political support and an injection of funds have also helped.
In 2018, there was a total of 33 polio cases confined to just two countries: Afghanistan and Pakistan.
BBC
Thursday, August 22, 2019
President Buhari assigns new ministers
President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday (Aug 21) handed out jobs to his new cabinet, insisting the government was able to meet Nigeria's challenges despite criticism that his line-up favoured ageing loyalists.
The former military ruler faces a raft of problems for his second term in office.
They range from curbing a grinding Islamist insurgency and spreading insecurity to fighting rampant corruption and bolstering a fragile economic recovery.
The 43-member cabinet was inaugurated at a ceremony in the presidential villa in Abuja almost three months after Buhari was sworn in for his final four years in power.
"Our nation continues to face tough challenges and we are prepared to meet them," he told ministers at the televised swearing-in event.
Buhari maintained key ministers in departments including finance, foreign affairs, transport and education and opted to keep the crucial petroleum portfolio under his control.
Critics blasted him for packing his new cabinet with veterans from his ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party instead of opting for more technocrats, youth or women.
There are only seven women in the new government, and the two youngest ministers are aged in their mid-40s.
Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed, who held onto her position, told AFP that bolstering much-needed income would be a key focus.
"The whole of government will be geared towards improving our revenue," she said.
Among other key players to stay in place were former Lagos governor Babatunde Fashola on the works and housing briefs, Rotimi Amaechi at transport and Geoffrey Onyeama as foreign minister.
Timipre Sylva, former governor of oil-rich Bayelsa state, became the junior petroleum minister under the supervision of Buhari as the president followed his predecessors over the past two decades and kept control of the vital sector.
Rauf Aregbesola, a new appointee, was named interior minister and Bashir Magashi took over at defence.
CNA
The former military ruler faces a raft of problems for his second term in office.
They range from curbing a grinding Islamist insurgency and spreading insecurity to fighting rampant corruption and bolstering a fragile economic recovery.
The 43-member cabinet was inaugurated at a ceremony in the presidential villa in Abuja almost three months after Buhari was sworn in for his final four years in power.
"Our nation continues to face tough challenges and we are prepared to meet them," he told ministers at the televised swearing-in event.
Buhari maintained key ministers in departments including finance, foreign affairs, transport and education and opted to keep the crucial petroleum portfolio under his control.
Critics blasted him for packing his new cabinet with veterans from his ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party instead of opting for more technocrats, youth or women.
There are only seven women in the new government, and the two youngest ministers are aged in their mid-40s.
Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed, who held onto her position, told AFP that bolstering much-needed income would be a key focus.
"The whole of government will be geared towards improving our revenue," she said.
Among other key players to stay in place were former Lagos governor Babatunde Fashola on the works and housing briefs, Rotimi Amaechi at transport and Geoffrey Onyeama as foreign minister.
Timipre Sylva, former governor of oil-rich Bayelsa state, became the junior petroleum minister under the supervision of Buhari as the president followed his predecessors over the past two decades and kept control of the vital sector.
Rauf Aregbesola, a new appointee, was named interior minister and Bashir Magashi took over at defence.
CNA
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
Aruna Quadri wins 2019 International Table Tennis title for Nigeria
Africa's top top-ranked table tennis player Aruna Quadri has bounced back from his shock semifinal exit at the Africa Cup to capture the 2019 International Table Tennis Challenge Nigeria Open title. The tournament attracted over 170 players from around the world. CGTN's Kelechi Emekalam has more.
Tuesday, August 20, 2019
Video - Nigerian ethnic violence amplifed by religous divide
For decades, people in northern Nigeria have endured near-constant conflict. In Kaduna state, fighting has pitted the majority Muslim population against minority Christians . Al Jazeera's Mohammed Adow reports from Kaduna, Nigeria, on efforts to reconcile the communities.
Building collapse kills 5 in Nigeria
Five persons were confirmed killed after two residential buildings collapsed in two different locations in Nigeria's northern state of Jigawa on Monday, said a local official.
The two incidents in Kirikasamma area of the state occurred following days of torrential rainfalls, said Salisu Garba-Kubayo, head of the local government.
Garba-Kubayo said three persons from one family died after their house suddenly collapsed in the village of Kuraduge, while two others, a man and his wife, died after their house collapsed in Madachi village in the same area.
The local official told reporters that following the persistent rainfall, over 30 villages in Kirikasamma had been taken over by flood.
At least 330 houses were destroyed by the floods, he added.
On Aug. 7, the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, which is responsible for issuing flood alert, issued an alert over possible flooding due to the high intensity of rainfall across the country.
The hydrological body said the flooding incidents are due to high rainfall intensity of long duration, rainstorms, blockage of drainage systems and poor urban planning resulting from the erection of structures within the floodplains and waterways.
This year, Nigeria's 36 states and the federal capital territory, Abuja, would witness different levels of flooding, the hydrological body predicted.
Xinhua
The two incidents in Kirikasamma area of the state occurred following days of torrential rainfalls, said Salisu Garba-Kubayo, head of the local government.
Garba-Kubayo said three persons from one family died after their house suddenly collapsed in the village of Kuraduge, while two others, a man and his wife, died after their house collapsed in Madachi village in the same area.
The local official told reporters that following the persistent rainfall, over 30 villages in Kirikasamma had been taken over by flood.
At least 330 houses were destroyed by the floods, he added.
On Aug. 7, the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, which is responsible for issuing flood alert, issued an alert over possible flooding due to the high intensity of rainfall across the country.
The hydrological body said the flooding incidents are due to high rainfall intensity of long duration, rainstorms, blockage of drainage systems and poor urban planning resulting from the erection of structures within the floodplains and waterways.
This year, Nigeria's 36 states and the federal capital territory, Abuja, would witness different levels of flooding, the hydrological body predicted.
Xinhua
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