For families living along the border between Nigeria and Niger, crossing between the two countries is part of everyday life. People visit relatives, trade in local markets and move with their livestock in search of water and pasture. This movement can interrupt childhood vaccination and delay the detection of disease outbreaks, increasing the risk of infections spreading between communities.
When Aisha Iliyasu brought her 2-year-old son to a vaccination post near the Nigeria–Niger border, she was concerned that months of travelling with the family’s livestock had caused him to miss routine vaccinations. Through coordinated outreach by health teams from both countries, workers checked his vaccination records and administered the vaccines he needed.
For families such as Iliyasu’s, cross-border cooperation helps children receive essential health services even when they move regularly between communities and countries.
Abubakar Sani Magaji, a community leader in Mazanya, Jibia Local Government Area of Katsina State, says this coordination is vital. Mazanya is a border community in north-western Nigeria. Magaji knows that when people and livestock cross the border, health risks can travel with them. Protecting children therefore requires health teams on both sides to work together.
“Our communities are closely connected, and people move across borders every day. To protect our children, our countries must work together, share information quickly, vaccinate children wherever they are and alert health workers when we see signs of disease. What protects one community ultimately protects the other,” Magaji said.
This shared responsibility guided the third-quarter International Border Surveillance and Routine Immunization Synchronization Meeting, held in Katsina State. Health authorities from Nigeria and Niger agreed on coordinated measures to reach children who have received no routine vaccines, support those who have missed recommended doses, detect disease threats early and strengthen outbreak responses in mobile and hard-to-reach communities.
The initiative supports Nigeria’s Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response framework, which promotes cross-border coordination, early detection, reporting, data analysis and public health action. It also contributes to Immunization Agenda 2030, a global strategy that seeks to ensure that everyone, everywhere benefits from vaccines, with particular attention to underserved populations.
Turning shared risks into coordinated action
The meeting brought together 70 participants, including 24 representatives from Niger and 46 from Katsina State. Participants represented six border local government areas and included surveillance and immunization officers, health promotion teams, state epidemiologists, the Katsina State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the United Nations Children’s Fund, Solina, World Health Organization and other partners.
According to surveillance data presented at the meeting, health authorities investigated 78 reported cases of acute flaccid paralysis in Katsina State and 56 in the neighbouring Maradi and Zinder regions of Niger. Acute flaccid paralysis is the sudden onset of weakness or paralysis. Surveillance teams investigate every reported case as a possible sign of polio.
The data also included suspected cases of measles and diphtheria and confirmed cases of cerebrospinal meningitis. Participants used the findings to identify shared risks, strengthen disease reporting and target communities requiring coordinated support.
“Cross-border collaboration is critical to managing outbreaks such as diphtheria, measles and cerebrospinal meningitis, particularly in highly mobile communities,” said Dr Abdulnasir Hamza, World Health Organization State Coordinator for Katsina State.
With technical support from World Health Organization and partners, health authorities from both countries reviewed the surveillance findings and agreed on a joint action framework. The framework establishes shared priorities for planning, implementation, information sharing and monitoring in border communities.
From identified gaps to joint action
The framework aims to identify settlements, mobile populations and children missed by vaccination services. It also supports faster exchanges of surveillance information, expanded vaccination services in underserved communities and community reporting of unusual illnesses and other warning signs.
Health authorities in Nigeria and Niger will hold quarterly cross-border review meetings and use agreed indicators to monitor vaccination coverage, identify gaps and take corrective action.
The collaboration covers six local government areas and districts, including 102 settlements across 24 wards in Nigeria and 99 settlements in Niger
It has also supported joint outbreak responses, including reactive vaccination following a cholera outbreak in Madaroufa, Maradi Region, coordinated with Jibia Local Government Area in Katsina State
During the joint vaccination exercise in August 2026, health teams reached about 94% of targeted children with polio and routine immunization vaccines.
Building a healthier, safer border
As families continue to move across the Nigeria-Niger border for trade, farming and pastoral activities, sustained cooperation between health authorities will remain essential. By sharing information, coordinating vaccination services and responding quickly to disease threats, both countries are helping ensure that children and communities on either side of the border are protected.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Nigeria.
