Ondo State has retained its lead in the Quarterly Performance Assessment score sheet on immunization against polio in the Federation in the last three quarters of the outgoing year 2012, the State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko has revealed.

He noted that the routine immunization coverage in Ondo state is 85 percent going by the third quarter of 2012 assessment by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation released in October, in which the state ranked first in the Federation.

Dr Mimiko disclosed this during the flag-off of the second round of 2012 Local Immunization Days in Ondo State held at the State Specialist Hospital, Akure.

The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Alhaji Ali Olanusi, at the flag off ceremony on yesterday, said the exercise is aimed at eradicating the crippling disease of polio from the entire state and Nigeria in general and to protect children against other childhood killer diseases such as Tuberculosis, Diphtheria, Pertusis, Tetanus and Measles among others.

Mimiko stated that the Local Immunization programme have been conducted in the state with tremendous success, stressing that the commitment of the federal, state and local governments as well as Donor Agencies has greatly assisted in the fight against polio.

According to him, the 'Ondo State Routine Immunization Reaching Every Ward Always,' (ORIREWA) initiative was another giant stride taken by the state government to, among other things, make vaccines against these childhood diseases available and accessible at all times and to ensure all the children in the state are vaccine-protected from childhood infections.

The governor revealed that the routine immunization coverage in Ondo state is 85 percent going by the third quarter of 2012 assessment by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation released in October with the state coming first in the entire nation.