Federal Government should show more seriousness about malaria control by involving the private sector

How to control malaria burden - Expert

Thursday, 15 April 2010

Even as Nigeria joins other nations to mark the World Malaria Day, a medical expert has stressed that ensuring access to the new malaria medicine, Artesunate Combination Therapy (ACT), remains central to reducing the burden of the disease on African continent.
This was made known by the country coordinator of the Future Health Systems (Nigeria), Professor Oladimeji Oladepo, while speaking with Nigeria Tribune in Ibadan.
He declared that the current situation, whereby only nine per cent of the recommended artesunate combination therapy was sourced in the public health facilities and another 58 per cent from private medicine vendors would not go well with malaria control.
According to him, “Nigeria still contributes 25 per cent of ill health and deaths due to malaria cases in Africa. Malaria alone contributes 11 per cent of maternal deaths and 29 per cent of deaths in children.”
Professor Oladepo, who blamed the current burden of malaria on poor access to ACT, explained that the limited amount of these drugs in the public sector needed to be corrected by encouraging public-private -partnership in the fight against the disease.
According to him, the Federal Government should show more seriousness about malaria control by involving the private sector, especially the patent medicine vendors, in ensuring better access to ACT in the country, since patent medicine vendors were found in even the remotest parts of the country.
He emphasised that the integration of the private sector into malaria control remained a key to reducing deaths due to malaria in the country.

Related product you might see: