The Abia State Government has commenced vigorous campaign against malaria in rural areas in a concerted efforts to eradicate the disease from the State.

The Wife of Abia Governor, Mrs Priscilla Otti, made this known on Thursday during an event organised by Abia Government and PanAfricare Consortium to commemorate the 2024 World Malaria Day in Umuahia.

According to her, the theme of the event was a call to stakeholders to partner with the government and actively participate in the fight against malaria, especially in the rural areas

“The attainment of a zero-malaria status by the state is achievable and the work begins will all of us,” she said.

Otti said that studies reveal that the state has high malaria burden, and pregnant women and children under five years were the most affected.

She said that the government had began distribution of malaria prevention and treatment tools across the state.

Otti said that as part of government’s efforts to eliminate malaria in the state, the government would ensure that the new malaria vaccine would be brought to Abia.

She urged the people of Abia desist from assuming that any feverish conditions they experience was a symptom of malaria.

Otti said that it was dangerous to use self-medication in treating malaria and urged the people of Abia to visit the primary healthcare center closest to them for proper medical treatment.

In her speech, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Ngozi Okoronkwo, said that the government had evolved programmes that would ensure that the citizens could have access to quality healthcare.

Okoronkwo, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Dr Ifeyinwa Uma-Kalu, urged the people of Abia to take advantage of the provisions made by the government to tackle the disease.

In a remark, the Executive Secretary of Abia State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr Kalu Kalu, said that the agency had evolved robust interventions for treating and preventing Malaria.

Kalu, who was represented by Mr Solomon Kalu, appealed to stakeholders to support the government’s efforts to eradicate malaria.

In his address, the Country Director of PanAfricare Consortium, Dr Patrick Adah, said that his organisation was working in partnership with the government to eliminate malaria in Abia.

Adah said:”We have held community outreaches facilitate our campaign against malaria in the hinterlands, where you have the disadvantaged groups.

“We have distributed over 50,000 Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy tablets, 20,000 Sulfadoxine/Pyrimethamine, 73000 rapid diagnostic test kits and 246,000 insecticide treated nets.”

He said that his organisation’s partnership with the government entails ensuring that tools for preventing and treating malaria were readily available in the primary healthcare centers across the state.

The theme is “Accelerating the fight Against Malaria for a More Equitable World”.