Cov/ Dauda Iliya, Borno
Borno State in collaboration with the World Bank will unveil a ten year malaria intervention plan aim at reducing malaria burden and death in the state by fifty percent.
Chief of Staff to Borno state Governor and Supervising Commissioner for Health, Professor Isa Marte made this known while briefing newsmen as part of activities to commemorate this year’s World Malaria Day in Maiduguri.
Professor Marte noted that the state government and partners were currently adopting different approaches which include distribution of Insecticide treated nets, anti-malaria drugs as well as improve environmental and personnel hygiene to reduce the scourge.
He explained that priority would be given to internally displaced persons and newly resettled communities due to high prevalence of malaria cases.
“The state government has had 4 rounds of uninterrupted Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention intervention between 2017 and 2020 through the support of National Malaria Elimination Program, Nigeria Humanitarian Fund and World Health Organisation where over 2,000,000 children 3 months to 5 years were reached every year” he noted.
Professor Isa Marte remarked that the state and partners have achieved remarkable targets in the implementation of various interventions which yielded better results in the 2018 National Demographic and Health Survey.
On the new malaria vaccine, the Commissioner described it as a welcome development which would change the tide in the global fight against malaria.
According to him, Borno state government will not hesitate to procure the vaccine whenever it is approved by regulators.
Report says Borno state had in 2020 recorded 359,366 malaria cases with 370 deaths.