From Christiana Gokyo, Jos
The Plateau State Government has expressed satisfaction with the progress recorded in malaria control through the Ministry of Health and the State Malaria Elimination Programme (SMEP), with support from development partners under the “Time Is Now” administration.
Speaking during the World Malaria Day celebration held at Crispan Hotel, Jos, over the weekend, the Deputy Governor, Hon. Mrs. Josephine Piyo, who represented the Governor, said the success of the 2024 and 2025 Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaigns recorded over 100 percent coverage across five implementation cycles from June to October 2024.
The 2026 World Malaria Day was marked with the theme: “Driven to End Malaria: Now We Can. Now We Must,” and the slogan “Let’s Do It.”
According to her, the achievement was made possible through the engagement of over 12,000 ad-hoc staff and strong collaboration with the Malaria Consortium.
She also highlighted the 96 percent success rate recorded during the 2024 Insecticide-Treated Net (ITN) campaign, and commended the wife of the state governor, Helen Mutfwang, who served as Net Ambassador, alongside wives of local government chairmen for their advocacy efforts.
Piyo further noted that, with support from the Global Health Supply Chain–Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) project, malaria commodities, including rapid diagnostic test kits, ACTs, IPTp drugs, and Artesunate injections—are being distributed to 406 health facilities across the state, benefiting communities in all 325 wards.
She appreciated the World Health Organization for its technical support and welcomed the PATH-REACH Project as a new partner in the malaria elimination drive.
“Malaria prevalence in the state has dropped significantly from 18.8 percent in 2021 to 2.8 percent in 2025,” she said, describing the development as a testament to the commitment of healthcare workers, partners, and communities.
The Deputy Governor reaffirmed the government’s resolve to sustain the fight until a malaria-free Plateau State and Nigeria are achieved, urging residents to adopt preventive measures such as sleeping under insecticide-treated nets, eliminating mosquito breeding sites, testing before treatment, and ensuring proper antenatal care for pregnant women.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Nicholas Baamlong, commended the state government and stakeholders for their sustained efforts and contributions to malaria control.
Also speaking, the Malaria Consortium representative, Dr. Mbwas Machor, said the organisation has partnered with the state since 2021 to deliver life-saving preventive medicines to over one million children aged 3–59 months monthly during peak transmission periods from June to October.
He noted that the intervention has significantly reduced malaria prevalence and deaths among children under five, while calling on the government to increase domestic funding and urging communities to adopt preventive practices, including the use of treated nets and environmental sanitation.
In his remarks, the Coordinator of the State Malaria Elimination Programme (SMEP), Dr. Kizito Zuhumnan, said the symposium aimed to chart strategies to further reduce malaria prevalence from the current 2.8 percent to zero, expressing confidence that elimination is achievable.
Malaria remains a major public health challenge in Nigeria, accounting for nearly a quarter of global cases and deaths, with an estimated nine to ten deaths recorded every hour from the disease and its complications.