By Christiana Gokyo, Jos
The Plateau State Government has officially flagged off the 2026 Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaign as part of efforts to protect children from malaria and further reduce the disease burden across the state.
The flag-off ceremony, held at the Crispan Event Center in Jos, brought together government officials, health practitioners, development partners, and other stakeholders committed to improving child health and malaria prevention.
The campaign is designed to provide life-saving preventive malaria medication to eligible children during the peak malaria transmission season.
Speaking at the event, the Plateau State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Nicholas Ba’amlong, commended the First Lady of Plateau State, Barr. Helen Mutfwang, for her commitment to the programme as the 2026 SMC Ambassador.
According to him, her advocacy and support have contributed significantly to ongoing efforts aimed at protecting children from malaria across the state.
Dr. Ba’amlong also praised the State Malaria Elimination Programme, Malaria Consortium, development partners, and frontline health workers for their roles in implementing seasonal malaria prevention initiatives that have helped reduce malaria cases in Plateau State.
He further appreciated Governor Caleb Mutfwang for prioritising the health sector and providing strong support for healthcare programmes, while calling on community leaders, wives of local government chairmen, and other stakeholders to actively support the campaign to ensure its success.
During the ceremony, Barr. Helen Mutfwang was officially crowned the 2026 Ambassador of the Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention campaign in recognition of her commitment to the health and well-being of women and children.
Addressing participants, the First Lady described the flag-off of the campaign as another major step towards safeguarding children from malaria and improving public health outcomes across the state.
She expressed satisfaction with the progress made in malaria control, revealing that malaria prevalence in Plateau State had dropped from 18.8 per cent in 2021 to 2.8 per cent in 2025 through the collective efforts of government, healthcare workers, communities, and development partners.
“This achievement demonstrates that with strong leadership, effective partnerships, and community participation, malaria can be defeated,” she stated.
Barr. Mutfwang urged parents and caregivers to ensure that eligible children receive the free SMC medicines during every cycle of the campaign.
She also commended Governor Caleb Mutfwang, Malaria Consortium, healthcare workers, and community volunteers for their contributions to the fight against malaria before officially flagging off the campaign.
Speaking during the event, the Programme Manager of the Plateau State Malaria Elimination Programme, Nurse Ndak Kizito Zuhumnan, explained that the exercise was aimed at mobilising stakeholders and communities to protect children from malaria during the peak transmission season.
He disclosed that community drug distributors, health workers, and supervisors would conduct house-to-house visits from June to October to administer preventive malaria medicines to children aged three to 59 months across the state.
“The aim of this medication is to prevent children from coming down with malaria. We want to reach over one million children, and we urge parents and guardians to make every eligible child available for this free and safe intervention,” he said.
Zuhumnan noted that Plateau State had recorded remarkable success in malaria control, attributing the achievement largely to the SMC programme and sustained collaboration among government agencies, health workers, development partners, the media, and community leaders.
In a goodwill message delivered on behalf of the West and Central Africa Programme Director of Malaria Consortium, Dr. Maxwell Kolawole, Dr. Mbwas Mashor commended the Plateau State Government and its partners for their commitment to malaria control efforts.
He noted that despite Nigeria’s high malaria burden, Plateau State had achieved significant progress in reducing malaria prevalence through sustained interventions and effective partnerships.
Dr. Mashor disclosed that the 2026 SMC campaign would target more than one million eligible children across the state and reaffirmed Malaria Consortium’s commitment to supporting malaria elimination efforts.
He called for stronger government ownership, sustained funding, and continued collaboration to consolidate the gains already achievedAlso speaking, the Chairman of the Association of Primary Healthcare, Chundung Maina, commended Plateau State for strengthening its health system through data-driven planning and implementation.
She observed that the progress recorded in the state reflected stronger political will, increased investment, and effective use of evidence in public health decision-making.
According to her, Plateau State is increasingly gaining national recognition as a model for health sector improvement, stressing that sustained commitment and adequate financing remain critical to expanding and sustaining the gains already recorded in the health sector.
