From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari has declared that elimination of malaria would save Nigeria an estimated N687 billion in 2022 and N2 trillion by 2030.
He made the declaration, yesterday, in Abuja at the inauguration of Nigeria End Malaria Council (NEMC), projecting that successful implementation of the council’s agenda would save the country from the economic burden of the disease.
According to a statement by Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Buhari told the 16-member council, headed by the Founder and President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, that beyond improving the quality of life, health and well-being of Nigerians, the concerted strategy to tackle malaria had both public health as well as socio-economic benefits for Nigeria.
Concerned that the age-old disease had remained a major public health challenge in Nigeria, he cited a World Health Organisation (WHO) report from 2021, which showed that Nigeria alone accounts for 27 per cent of all malaria cases and 32 per cent of deaths worldwide.
“Malaria infection can cause severe disease and complication in pregnant women and lead to high rates of miscarriage.
“It is also responsible for a considerable proportion of deaths in infants and young children, with children under five years being the most vulnerable group affected. These are reasons we must not relent in fighting malaria,” the president said.
President Buhari said he chose Dangote to chair the council because of his track record and passion for supporting initiatives on various health issues such as polio and primary health care system strengthening.
He expressed confidence that Dangote would bring his outstanding achievements to help the country achieve its goal of malaria elimination, adding that a group of eminent personalities who have made their mark in all walks of life had been chosen to work in the council.
Buhari added that the council’s membership reflects the government’s commitment to significantly reducing the malaria burden in Nigeria to the point where it is no longer a public health issue.
In separate remarks, Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, and the Minister of State for Health, Joseph Ekumankama Nkama, said since 2010, Nigeria has been recording a continuous decline in malaria from 42 per cent in 2010, 27 per cent in 2015 to 23 per cent in 2018.
Quoting figures from the 2010 Nigeria Malaria Indicator Survey and the 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, they attributed the decline to the thorough implementation of the National Malaria Strategic Plan (NMSP).
Both ministers, however, admitted that funding gap has impacted the implementation of the malaria programmes in Nigeria, adding that the country needs N1.89 trillion to reduce malaria prevalence and mortality by 2025.
Ekumankama said the ministry would require N1.89 trillion to fully implement Nigeria National Malaria Strategic Plan 2021 to 25, aimed at achieving a parasitic prevalence of less than 10 per cent and reduce mortality attributable to malaria to less than 50 deaths per 1,000 live births by 2025.
“The biggest challenge confronting us, which prevents the elimination of malaria, to ensure a malaria-free nation in the shortest possible time is inadequate finances to fund the NMSP,” he said.