On March 12, 2026, All Babies conducted a courtesy visit to the Governor of Gombe State, who was represented by his Deputy, Dr. Manasseh Daniel Jatau. The discussion focused on sustaining recent gains in routine immunization uptake in the state and reaching children who are still missing vaccines.

The meeting brought together the Commissioner of Health, Dr. Habu Dahiru; members of the State Executive Council; and leadership of the State Primary Health Care Development Agency (SPHCDA). It followed an earlier request to meet the Governor, who was out of the country at the time.

Led by Stakeholder Relations Director Nura Muhammad, the All Babies delegation presented program results and aligned with the state on next steps.
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Progress built through routine systems

During the meeting, our Stakeholder Relations Director described the program’s impact in Gombe State. He noted that, as of December 31, 2025, All Babies had enrolled 396,800 caregivers across the state and disbursed ₦2.5 billion in conditional cash transfers to support completion of the six routine childhood immunization visits since the program’s launch in the state.

Working in partnership with the State Ministry of Health and SPHCDA, our program operates in government health facilities across all 11 Local Government Areas.

He also highlighted improvements in coverage, noting that BCG uptake has increased by 14 percentage points, Penta 1 by 18 points, and Measles 2 by 22 points. Over the same period, the proportion of zero-dose children has reduced by 18 percentage points, compared to All Babies’ baseline (Q4 State and LGA Report). At the facility level, these changes are reflected in more caregivers bringing their children for vaccinations and completing the routine immunization schedule.
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The team also shared information about an ongoing oral rehydration solution (ORS) pilot in Funakaye LGA. Over 40,000 sachets have already been distributed to caregivers during immunization visits, effectively integrating disease prevention tools into routine immunization visits.

Reinforcing demand at the community level

To sustain these gains, the team made two requests to the State Government.

First, we requested support for consistent public messaging via radio to encourage caregivers to complete their children’s immunization schedules. All Babies already promotes vaccine uptake in the state via radio engagement, including a monthly one-hour phone-in programme and jingles aired twice daily on Prestige FM.

Second, we asked for stronger engagement with traditional leaders to address misconceptions and improve community mobilization. These requests were aimed at closing a common gap in caregiver awareness and community mobilization: while services are available, uptake still depends on what caregivers hear and trust within their communities.

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Building on what works

The Deputy Governor welcomed the presentation and acknowledged All Babies’ contribution to improving immunization uptake in the state.

“We will continue to use the Task Force on Immunization to drive engagement and public awareness,” he said.

He reaffirmed the state’s approach to community engagement through traditional and religious leaders.

“We are already working with them, and we will continue. They are central to how we reach our communities.”

He also stressed the need to think beyond current interventions and commended the All Babies program for reminding caregivers that nothing lasts forever and encouraging them to prioritize healthcare whether incentives are available in the future or not.

“Nothing lasts forever. We must always think about what happens next.”

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‍‍‍Keeping progress steady

Stakeholder engagement strengthens coordination at the executive level and aligns priorities that influence immunization uptake. All Babies will continue to work with the Ministry of Health and SPHCDA to deepen partnerships with traditional leaders and provide regular updates to the state. 

Gombe has recorded measurable improvements. The challenge will be to sustain the gains and continue to reach children who have not received any vaccines. That requires steady work across facilities and communities. This visit was part of that process.