Dr. Aisha Anka, the Zamfara State Commissioner of Health, has urged all staff and facilities under her Ministry to collaborate with the state government and development partners to ensure the success of the state’s malaria eradication campaign.
The commissioner also stated that the government has put plans in place to prevent the diversion of insecticide-treated nets.
Anka told reporters in the Ministry’s Conference Hall that the present frequency of malaria in the state is frightening, stressing that the disease is a severe threat to children and pregnant women.
The commissioner went on to say that malaria is still the leading cause of absenteeism from schools, offices, farms, markets, and other lawful places of business, resulting in low productivity.
“It exerts huge social and economic burdens on our communities and country. The current prevalence of malaria in Zamfara State is 37 percent (NMIS), 2021.
“To reduce the burden of malaria in the State, the State Government in collaboration with the National Malaria Eradication Program (NMEP), the United State President’s Malaria Initiative, PMI US, and other development partners decided to tackle the problem of malaria eradication in the state by donating 3,200,000 Insecticide Treated Nets,” she said.
According to the commissioner, before the distribution of the nets, every household must be registered, saying that the exercise is referred to as household mobilization whereby persons wearing uniforms with malaria logo will visit households from 1st to 7th December, 2023.
She lamented that Nigeria accounts for 66 million malaria cases annually (World Malaria Report, 2017), quoting the 2021 Nigeria Indicator Survey,(NMIS) as saying that there has been reduction in malaria prevalence in Nigeria from 27 per cent in 2015, (MIS) to 22 per cent in 2021, (NMIS).
“The distribution of the nets in Zamfara State will commence from 24th to 2nd of January, 2024. A representative of each household is expected to go to the distribution points written on the net cards to collect his or her family’s net.”
In his own speech, the Program Manager of the US President’s Malaria Initiative (USPMI), Sani Aliyu highlighted the role of the media, stressing that the media should provide publicity before, during and after the distributions.
Aliyu noted that political interference remain one of the greatest challenges, pointing out that formidable strategies have been put in place to handle the issue of diversion.