United States philanthropist, Bill Gates has described the violence in northern Nigeria perpetuated by Islamist sect Boko Haram, as the major challenge for eradicating polio in the country.
According to Gates, Nigeria could cut the number of polio cases to zero in 2015 and be declared free of the disease by 2018.
The former richest man in the world told Reuters that the national eradication campaign has however had to contend with an insurgency in the north of the country.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation supports the global initiative to wipe out polio, which includes a campaign in Nigeria, one of three nations where the crippling virus is still endemic. The others are Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“We have got all the challenges up in northern Nigeria, the violence from Boko Haram, and the distraction of an upcoming election,” Gates said in a telephone interview, referring to an Islamist rebel group that has in the past targeted vaccination workers, and to Nigeria’s national vote next year,”Gates said in a telephone conversation with Reuters.