The Adamawa State government has launched a Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention Campaign targeted at 1.2 children across the 21 local government areas.
The state deputy governor, Prof Kaletapha Farauta, who flagged off the exercise in Yola on Friday lamented that malaria has continued to be a major public health concern, especially for children under five years.
Farauta said the campaign is a strong statement of government’s commitment to protecting the lives and futures of children and communities.
The deputy governor, represented by the chief of staff, Government House, Dr Edgar Amos noted that the SMC campaign is a proven strategy for reducing the burden of malaria during the rainy season when the risk of transmission is highest.
“It involves the administration of safe and effective antimalarial drugs to children aged 3-59 months every month during the peak transmission period.
“Our government will continue to invest in preventive and curative services, including the provision of free malaria drugs for vulnerable groups, equipping primary health centres and enhancing disease surveillance systems.
“We commend the continued support of our international and local partners, Malaria Consortium, WHO, UNICEF, the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP) and all donor agencies for standing with us in the fight against malaria.”
She urged traditional, community and religious leaders to mobilise their communities and followers and encouraged parents and caregivers to ensure that eligible children receive all four doses of the SMC vaccines.
The commissioner for Health and Human Services, Chief Felix Tangwami, disclosed that Nigeria accounts for approximately 27 percent of global malaria deaths while the state, due to its ecological and seasonal characteristics, experiences high malaria transmission during the rainy season hence the strategic timing of the SMC.
Tangwami added that the campaign involves the monthly administration of Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine plus Amodiaquine (SPAQ) to children aged 3 to 59 months during the malaria transmission season, which spans four cycles.
According to him, evidence has shown that SMC can reduce malaria cases by up to 75 percent when properly implemented.
“This year, commodities worth over N4.8 billion have been procured and deployed to Adamawa State with a target to reach over 1.2 million eligible children across all 21 LGAs,” he said.
He revealed that over 6000 trained community distributors and health workers have been deployed for door-to-door delivery to enhance access to hard-to-reach communities.
He said that over 3 million long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) were distributed during the last campaign.
Chidimka Okolo from Catholic Relief Services stated that the fight against malaria is not for one person, urging that all hands must be on deck to tackle the menace.
The programme manager, Society for Family Health, Prof Mahmud Kumo appreciated the state government for emerging first in in the fight against malaria in Nigeria
Ben Alisa of National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), who represented the national coordinator, said the vaccines would help the children to grow stronger and healthier in the state.
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