The Wife of the Governor of Cross River State, Dr. (Mrs.) Linda Ayade has flagged off vaccination to eliminate maternal Neonatal Tetanus disease in the State. Dr. Ayade who flagged off the exercise on Saturday in Calabar, called on women to take advantage of the exercise of the Maternal Neonatal Tetanus Elimination (MNTE) vaccination exercise to protect their babies from tetanus.

 

According to her, “it is our strong desire to eliminate tetanus from Cross River State, completely”.

She added that the immunisation exercise is the key to the prevention of Tetanus disease in Nigeria, while raising awareness on the dangers of neonatal tetanus, warning that, “mothers could be infected during unsafe and unhygienic delivery of their babies.”

 

She said, “every girl and woman of child bearing age, 15 – 49 years, must seize the opportunity to benefit from the exercise”, as she went on to administer the first immunisation to a nursing mother.

 

The wife of Governor also flagged off the world breastfeeding week, encouraging mothers to “breastfeed exclusively for 6 months and then continuously for one to two years as it helps in proper development of the child’s brain and immune system. It also helps bonding and prevent breast cancer,” she said.

By Frankie Ifop, Calabar Reporters