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Participants at the media parley
By Akanji Olowolodu, Bauchi
The Bauchi State Government in Collaboration with United State Government President Malaria Initiative (PMI-US) and Against Malaria Foundation (AMF) will be distributing 4.4million Insecticide Treated Net (ITN) to every household in Bauchi State.
The disclosure was made on Thursday during a Media Parley on ITNs Distribution campaign in Bauchi State held at the Bauchi State Agency for the Control of HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis/Leprosy and Malaria (BACATMA).
It was established during the parley that Malaria has remained a life-threatening disease transmitted to people through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes.
It was also disclosed that Nigeria accounts for over 66 million malaria cases annually (World malaria report 2022), and an estimated 30% of child and 11% of maternal deaths each year are due to malaria.
According to the 2021 Nigeria Malaria Indicator Survey (NMIS 2021), there was a reduction in malaria prevalence in Nigeria from 27% in 2015 (MIS 2015) to 22% in 2021 (NMIS 2021) while the current prevalence of malaria in Bauchi State is 32% (NMIS 2021).
Malaria remains the commonest cause of absenteeism from schools, offices, farms, markets, etc resulting in lower productivity as it exerts a huge social and economic burden on our communities and country, billions of Naira are lost to malaria annually in form of treatment cost, prevention, and loss of man hours.
Therefore, Sleeping inside an Insecticide-treated Net (ITN) is one of the best ways to prevent malaria, as studies show that the use of ITNs reduced malaria incidence by 50 per cent in sub-Saharan Africa, in a region which accounts for more than 90 per cent of global cases (World malaria report 2017)
In other to reduce the burden of Malaria in Bauchi state, the Bauchi State Government through the Bauchi State Agency for combating HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Leprosy and Malaria (BACATMA) in collaboration with the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), United State Government President Malaria Initiative (PMI-US) and Against Malaria Foundation (AMF) is currently implementing Net Campaign to distribute 4.4million Insecticide Treated Net (ITN) to every household in Bauchi State.
Before these nets will be distributed, registration of households must be conducted, this is referred to as household mobilization and includes persons wearing uniforms with malaria logo who will visit the households from 27th May-4 June 2023 to register and issue net cards that will entitle each household for a free net.
The distribution of the free nets will commence from 21″ – 27th June 2023 during which, a representative of each household is expected to go to the distribution point written on their nets cards to collect free nets.
Once collected, air the new nets for 24 hours in the shade before hanging, also, Once hung, beneficiaries should sleep inside with the nets well-tucked over the sleeping area every night all year round.
The people of the state were urged to win the fight against malaria by sleeping inside the Insecticide Treated Net (ITN) every night.
