The Northern Regional Director of Health, Dr. Abdulai Abukari, has disclosed that malaria cases in the region have significantly dropped, following the government’s intervention.
These government-supported initiatives include, the distribution of Long-Lasting Insecticide-Treated Nets, Malaria Case Management, Diagnosis and Treatment, Larval Source Management, Malaria Vaccine RT’SS (Mosquirix TM), Intermittent Preventive Treatment for Pregnant women (IPTp) Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) and Indoor Residual Spraying.
According to him, the percentage of patients who visited the hospitals in the region with malaria cases stood at 31.1% in 2022. However, this has dropped to 26.3% in 2023, an achievement he attributed to government’s interventions.
He singled out the SMC strategy as the most effective strategy in reducing malaria morbidity and mortality among young children,
Dr Abukari said this strategy targets children aged 3 to 5 years, a group at high risk during the rainy season.
He further disclosed that this year’s SMC aims at treating 524,747 children, which is approximately19.2% of the region’s population.
He used appealed to stakeholders to support community sensitisation and ensure high participation in the SMC programme.
“SMC is crucial for protecting our children during the high malaria transmission period,” he concluded.
Bala Ali, ISD
