THE decision of the World Health Organisation (WHO) to exclude Nigeria from the ongoing mass vaccination campaign to protect people from the yellow fever disease in West Africa, is absurd and bound to be counter-productive.

WHO, had last week, announced that health workers will begin vaccinating people in Benin, Liberia and Sierra Leone against yellow fever on Monday. The week-long United Nations (UN)-supported initiative is targeted at nearly 12 million people in the sub-region. Local health teams will administer the vaccine, as well as offer a pack of pre-emptive measures, including Vitamin A, deworming tablets and, in Sierra Leone, measles' vaccine.

There are an estimated 200,000 cases of yellow fever worldwide each year, causing 30,000 deaths, according to WHO. The mosquito-borne virus is endemic in Africa, and there is no known cure. The 13 highest risk countries in Africa are Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. In Africa, an estimated 508 million people are at risk.

The ongoing campaign which is also supported by UNICEF, national Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, as well as other partners, is the first in which yellow fever vaccination drives were simultaneously launched across several countries. Since 2007, a total of 29 million people have been protected through mass vaccinations conducted in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, Senegal and Togo, as well as a first phase completed in Sierra Leone.

Quite surprisingly, despite its huge population which is higher than all other nations in West Africa put together, Nigeria is yet to be a beneficiary of the international mass yellow fever vaccination campaign. A WHO statement distributed late last week at the UN headquarters in New York, did not explain why Nigeria was left out of the biggest-ever international campaign against yellow fever. However, limited resources is believed to be responsible.

Whatever the reason, it is inconceivable that an international initiative aimed at combating the spread of yellow fever in the West African sub-region, would be planned without Nigeria being factored in. Given its huge size and the prevalence of the disease in the country, Nigeria ought to have been the starting point for any serious effort at combating the disease.

Indeed, common sense dictates that the most populous nation in a region with high human traffic and from which much of the traffic originates, should be accorded priority in an issue as critical as the fight against the spread of yellow fever. If WHO is serious about eradicating yellow fever in West Africa in the near future, the right place to begin is Nigeria.

WHO should re-appraise its strategy of containing the scourge in the sub-region. The plan by WHO to reach all the other nations, including Nigeria by 2015 could proved a little too late for many. The organisation should avoid a repeat of the problem created by the partial success of the polio campaign in Nigeria which led to the exportation of the strain of the disease to other countries.

It is expected that the Nigerian government will investigate this omission which may prove costly for WHO, the West African sub region and, indeed, the world as a whole, and make appropriate representation to the world health body on the consequences of its decision. However, Nigeria, on its own, should make extra effort to combat yellow fever.

As a first step, government should embark on a massive public enlightenment campaign to create awareness about the causes and prevention of the deadly disease. That the vast majority of cases of deaths from yellow fever occur in sub-Saharan Africa, where it is a major public health problem occurring in endemic patterns, is a pointer to the seriousness of the situation. Besides, the risk of international spread is greater now than before.

In view of its high fatality rate, we strongly counsel that personal prevention remains the best antidote to yellow fever. This includes vaccination, as well as avoidance of mosquito bites in areas where yellow fever is endemic.