The Federal Ministry of Health, with the support of donor organisations and partners, reached over 27million children across 21 states with Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) medicines last year.
The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire stated this yesterday at the national SMC stakeholders’ review meeting, and the 2022 Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNS) campaigns state engagement meeting.
One of the interventions recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on preventing malaria in children is Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) which involves intermittent administration of full treatment courses of anti-malarial medicines to children in areas of high seasonal transmission during the malaria season.
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Represented by the Director, Public Health of the ministry, Dr Morenike Alex-Okoh, he said 42, 910,303 insecticide treated nets (ITNs) were distributed to beneficiaries in 11 states.
He said the need to accelerate malaria elimination in Nigeria led to the expansion of SMC and ITN mass distribution campaigns.
The SMC National Focal Person at the National Malaria Elimination Programme of the ministry, Dr Shekarau Emmanuel, called on states to increase funding support for SMC implementation in their states.
