Malaria accounts for 50 per cent mortality in Borno – WHO

BY ABDULLAHI ISAH, MAIDUGURI

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that Malaria accounts for 50 percent of deaths in Borno state, hence the flagging off of the National Anti Malaria campaign in the state, the first of its kind in the insurgency ravaged state.

The WHO Communication Analyst, Dr. Chima Onuekwe, who disclosed this at a media dialogue with Newsmen in Maiduguri, said the Anti Malaria campaign was currently going on in Jere, MMC, Dikwa Konduga, Mafa and Mugno local Government areas.

He said over 2/3 of the health facilities in Borno were affected by the insurgency in the state, adding that to address the vacuum created by this, the WHO established 113 Mobile Health Teams across the state, as well as over 500 Community Resources Persons (CORP) in over 800 communities in the state.

While soliciting the cooperation and support of the Media, Dr. Onuekwe said all these effort are not only to tackle malaria but other diseases such as Measles, Polio, meningitis and Tuberculosis.

He said the WHO also provided financial and technical support to Federal, State and Local governments, as well as Non Governmental Agencies.

On the issue of Malnutrition, the WHO said considering the UNICEF report that over 450,000 children in the North-east were malnourished, they have provided 80 Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) kits, as well as 25 stabilization centres in Borno, adding that each SAM kit is capable of treating 7,000 children.

He said the WHO so far screened 300,000 children against malnutrition in the North-east and called on the journalists in the region to always educate and enlighten the general public on health and hygiene to prevent diseases.