This study is premised on the increasing
global concerns over the widespread resistance
to polio eradication campaign in northern
Nigeria. It aims to determine the level of campaign
acceptance and compare the influences
of mass media and interpersonal communication
sources in Zaria local government area,
being one of the high-risk (WPV-endemic)
areas in northern Nigeria, where campaign
resistance is known to be high. By way of
quantitative survey, the study utilized 10%
sample of the populations of eight out of the
thirteen Wards in Zaria local government area,
with a response rate of 78.6%. Findings reveal
close ranks between campaign acceptance and
resistance in the local government area, thus
further confirming the difficulties still faced in
polio eradication campaign in the region. This
study also indicates higher performance of
Interpersonal than Mass Media sources in
influencing campaign acceptance and resistance
in the local communities. Contact with
friends and relations was rated the most influential
interpersonal sources in the acceptance
and resistance decision of individuals, while
newspapers and magazines were rated most
influential media sources that influenced campaign
resistance in the local communities. The
study concludes that a polio eradication campaign,
backed with competent and sufficient
communication expertise that utilizes knowledge-based
indigenous interpersonal communication
strategies will likely result in greater
community acceptance in northern Nigeria.