Magaji Soja works at a public health clinic in Kwalam, a town in Taura LGA in Jigawa State. The state has historically had the highest burden of measles in the country and very low childhood immunization rates. At this clinic, one of more than 5,000 clinics where New Incentives operates in northern Nigeria, Magaji is responsible for administering routine vaccinations to infants based on Nigeria’s immunization schedule. Staff like Magaji also travel to hard-to-reach villages, along with New Incentives staff, to offer vaccinations to children in rural households during outreach sessions. 

Magaji follows a specific series of steps for the immunization procedure for each infant, which ensures he adheres to the protocols required by the government, as well as New Incentives’ guidelines. Before children receive their first vaccination against tuberculosis (BCG vaccine), Magaji checks their arms for a scar, which is evidence of potential prior immunization against BCG, and also checks the child immunization register (CIR) to avoid unsafe duplicate enrollments. After administering the vaccines, Magaji adds a golden dot to their child health card and marks the tally register. New Incentives field officers then check the child’s immunization card for eligibility and provide the caregiver with a cash incentive of ₦1,000, which they can use in any way they choose—often for transportation, food, or household goods. Read more about the role of New Incentives field officers in this blog post.

In this short video, Magaji talks about working at Kwalam Model Primary Health Care and the value of New Incentives’ All Babies program. We also meet Rashida Abdullahi, a caregiver who has brought her infant to the clinic for his routine vaccinations. She says her “children are protected because even when the sickness hits them, it’s usually mild as a result of these immunizations that they are receiving, and we are grateful.”  

We are very thankful for the support and hard work of clinic staff like Magaji, who play a critical role in our program and work hard every day to administer life-saving vaccinations to children. 

‍