From April to May 2025, Nigeria Health Watch, in partnership with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Solina Centre for International Research and Development (SCIDaR), and civil society organisations (CSOs), implemented the Local Voices Initiative to rebuild trust and stimulate vaccine demand during the National Immunisation Plus Days (NIPDs) in Bauchi and Kebbi States, Northern Nigeria. Although Nigeria was certified free of wild poliovirus in 2020, ongoing circulation of vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) continues to threaten eradication gains. The Local Voices Initiative reframed vaccine communication around trust, reciprocity, and community ownership, recognising that sustained uptake depends on relationships, not directives. In Kebbi, nine CSOs were deployed across 31 wards in eight LGAs, while Bauchi engaged 11 CSOs across 33 wards in seven LGAs. Through community dialogues, mosque engagements, compound meetings, and local radio programming, vaccination resistance declined markedly. Kebbi resolved 17% of 4,478 noncompliant households, with most accepting vaccination within four days, while Bauchi achieved a 64% resolution rate. Radio campaigns on Albarka FM and Equity FM reinforced community confidence, reaching more than four million listeners combined. The initiative led to a measurable increase in community acceptance and intent to vaccinate, confirming that behaviour change was driven by trust and inclusion rather than information alone. For SBCC practitioners, Local Voices demonstrates that co-created, trust-driven approaches, combining interpersonal communication, mass media, and local leadership can effectively convert vaccine hesitancy into sustained demand and strengthen long-term health system resilience.
From April to May 2025, Nigeria Health Watch, in partnership with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Solina Centre for International Research and Development (SCIDaR), and civil society organisations (CSOs), implemented the Local Voices Initiative to rebuild trust and stimulate vaccine demand during the National Immunisation Plus Days (NIPDs) in Bauchi and Kebbi States, Northern Nigeria. Although Nigeria was certified free of wild poliovirus in 2020, ongoing circulation of vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) continues to threaten eradication gains. The Local Voices Initiative reframed vaccine communication around trust, reciprocity, and community ownership, recognising that sustained uptake depends on relationships, not directives. In Kebbi, nine CSOs were deployed across 31 wards in eight LGAs, while Bauchi engaged 11 CSOs across 33 wards in seven LGAs. Through community dialogues, mosque engagements, compound meetings, and local radio programming, vaccination resistance declined markedly. Kebbi resolved 17% of 4,478 noncompliant households, with most accepting vaccination within four days, while Bauchi achieved a 64% resolution rate. Radio campaigns on Albarka FM and Equity FM reinforced community confidence, reaching more than four million listeners combined. The initiative led to a measurable increase in community acceptance and intent to vaccinate, confirming that behaviour change was driven by trust and inclusion rather than information alone. For SBCC practitioners, Local Voices demonstrates that co-created, trust-driven approaches, combining interpersonal communication, mass media, and local leadership can effectively convert vaccin ...
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