Lagos pledges to tackle malaria by using multi-prolong approach
By Joy Abalaka://
The Lagos state government has pledged to tackle the scourge of Malaria by using a multi-pronged approach including Environmental management and Integrated Vector Control for the prevention of malaria.
Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, made this assertion during the week at an awareness walk to commemorate year 2022 World Malaria Day in Lagos.
Prof Abayomi noted that the need to scale up innovation and deploy new tools to combat Malaria aligns with the theme for this year’s celebration, “Harness Innovation to Reduce the Malaria Burden and Save Lives”.
The Commissioner who was represented by the permanent secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Olusegun Ogboye, said government will scale up innovation and deploy new tools to combat malaria, just as it reaffirm its commitment to eliminate malaria from the state.
He said effective diagnosis and appropriate treatment of malaria cases; and Monitoring and Evaluation with emphasis on operational research and the use of its results for evidence–based programming would be adopted.
He noted that malaria remains a major public health challenge in the State adding that the disease remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the vulnerable group, especially children of under five years of age and pregnant women.
“This year’s theme ‘Harness Innovation to reduce the malaria burden and save lives’, highlights the fact that no single tool that is available today will solve the problem of malaria, rather, our collective actions involving improved investments, new and enhanced vector control approaches, diagnostics and anti-malarial medicines would speed up the pace of progress in the fight against the disease.” he said.
