Malaria: ACOMIN Advocates Preventive Interventions to Combat Scourge
The Civil Society in Malaria Control, Immunization and Nutrition (ACOMIN) has canvassed the adoption of preventive interventions to combat the high incidence of malaria in the country.
According to ACOMIN, the use of Insecticide-Treated Nets (ITNs), Indoor Residual Spraying, Larvae Source Management, Intermittent Preventive Treatment in Pregnant Women and Seasonal Malaria Chemotherapy will go a long way in addressing the malaria scourge in the country.
National Coordinator of ACOMIN, Ayo Ipinmoye who made the call at the National Media Meeting on the Global Fund Malaria Community-led Monitoring Project which is being implemented by ACOMIN, lamented that the regular occurrences of malaria cases, deaths, and disabilities are abnormally high and impact the majority of the Nigerian population negatively.
Ipinmoye stated that the high burden of disease is driven by several factors, which include behavioral patterns, inadequate funding and resourcing for health, inadequate human resource deployment for health and the nature of the parasite itself, in that it has been able to develop resistance to most medicines and pesticides used in the past.
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He observed that to combat the increasing incidence rate of malaria, urgent, sustained, systematic and collective efforts are required from all stakeholder groups. The deployment of all strategies and interventions that have proven to be effective are of dire necessity.
Ipinmoye said that from the results obtained over the past three years of implementation, it is see that, for the fight on elimination of Malaria to progress and succeed, health must come to the Front Burner in all National Discourses and in Budgetary Allocations.
According to him, Financing for Health should improve significantly and this should be done through Budgetary allocations while the National Health Insurance program enjoyed by the formal sector should be extended to other citizens of Nigeria, particularly the poor and most vulnerable.
He said, “Funding and finances for primary health delivery should be carefully mapped out and sanctioned against any misappropriation or mismanagement; to enable a robust public health program at all ward levels in the local government. The limited and dysfunctional health facilities in the places where the vulnerable population live pose a problem to seeking care in a timely manner. To combat the increasing incidence rate of malaria, urgent, sustained, systematic and collective efforts are required from all stakeholder groups”.
Ipinmoye stated that Malaria elimination should be seen as project that demands immediate attention adding that over the next years, the Civil Society will step up action to drive national, sub-national, community, mass media and stakeholders attention to the gaps that remain in this fight in order do all that is necessary to win the fight.
