From intense rejection to advocacy: how Muslim clerics were engaged in a polio eradication initiative in Northern Nigeria

Sani-Gwarzo Nasir; Gambo Aliyu; Inuwa Ya'u; Muktar Gadanya; Muktar Mohammad; Mahmud Zubair; Samer S El-Kamary

doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001687

From intense rejection to advocacy: how Muslim clerics were engaged in a polio eradication initiative in Northern Nigeria

PLoS Med. 2014 Aug 5;11(8):e1001687. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001687. eCollection 2014 Aug.

Authors

Sani-Gwarzo Nasir¹, Gambo Aliyu², Inuwa Ya'u³, Muktar Gadanya⁴, Muktar Mohammad¹, Mahmud Zubair³, Samer S El-Kamary⁵

Affiliations

¹ Federal Ministry of Health, Abuja, Nigeria.
² Health and Human Services, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria.
³ National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Abuja, Nigeria.
⁴ Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, Nigeria.
⁵ Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America.

Abstract

Gambo Aliyu and colleagues describe an approach to eradicating polio in Northern Nigeria by engaging Muslim clerics in influencing community perceptions. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Clergy*
Immunization Programs* / organization & administration
Islam*
Nigeria
Poliomyelitis / prevention & control*

Grants and funding

The implementation of this project was supported by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency and the World Health Organization's office in Abuja, Nigeria. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.